The Price of Hitsuzen
by jellolids
Summary: Our story begins as hitsuzen once again decides to play with the life of Kagome Higurashi, leading her to the store of the one person who understands hitsuzen better than she does...
1. Prologue: The One hated by Hitsuzen

As always, it must be stated that I own neither _InuYasha: a Feudal Fairytale_, nor _XxxHoLiC_. They are owned by Rumiko Takahashi and the ladies of CLAMP respectively. Not that I would _mind _owning either of them, you understand, especially the latter, but realistically, my chances are much better of becoming the writer of my own best selling manga series than of ever becoming the owner of either of those titles. Let me tell you something: as much as I hate writing comic scripts, it isn't likely that the former is going to happen.

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Most days, Kagome Higurashi strongly suspected that hitsuzen hated her guts. She wasn't exactly sure _why_ this was the case, just that it was the only reason she could come up with for why she wound up with one of the worst destinies possible.

First, she was destined to lose her father while in elementary school, forcing her to move from her nice, quiet home in the country to Tokyo with her mother and younger brother, and the shrine where her father had grown up. Then, once she had _finally_ gotten used to life in Tokyo, hitsuzen had seen fit to drag her down a centuries old well, and set her up to face hordes of youkai, all for the sake of one chunk of crystal with ridiculous powers. As if _that_ wasn't bad enough, hitsuzen had dumped her right into the hands of a hanyou who would never fall in love with her, but for whom _she_ would develop deep unrequited feelings. Then, once she was at last at home in the Sengoku Jidai, hitsuzen dumped her in the middle of an epically bloody battle, and then sent her back to the modern era. It couldn't even be bothered to be kind enough to send her home _before_ her hanyou's wedding.

For whatever reason, hitsuzen _really_ didn't like Kagome. In exchange, Kagome held out hope that eventually, hitsuzen _had _to stop hating her. It had been over a year since she had been blocked out of the Sengoku Jidai. Every week, she tried the well, hoping beyond hope that _this _time, hitsuzen would stop hating her, and the well would let her through again. After all, she still had the thrice blasted shikon no tama; in theory, the well _should_ still work. The jewel certainly did, if all the lesser youkai and evil spirits coming after her shrieking "Give me the shikon no tama!" were any indicae. Kagome found herself thanking the kami on a regular basis that the plans for the last battle had required her to learn how to channel her miko-ki through her hands and any sharp, pointy object available. It certainly made purifying whatever came after her significantly easier, and also ensured that she didn't get dragged off to the loony bin for carrying around a bow and quiver all the time.

She sighed as she took her seat in her home room class at school. Her travels in the Sengoku Jidai had resulted in her being held back a year in junior high, and, in all honesty, she was grateful, firstly, because it had effectively removed her from Yuka, Eri, and Ayumi's radar, and secondly, because she _knew_ she wouldn't have been able to pass her high school entrance exams with the amount of class she had missed. Thirdly, and most importantly, she was _very _happy to have been held back, because it meant that she hadn't been expelled. That had been a close call, with a practicing physician, who just so _happened _to be a family friend (and whose humanity Kagome _definitely_ questioned) coming to the rescue, explaining to the school that in his senility, Jii-chan had mistaken Kagome's repeated battles with Chrome's Disease for multiple strange illnesses. He even brought in lab data to support his claims. The school was mollified, and Kagome silently promised to make some very, _very_ nice giri-choco for him on Valentine's Day for the rest of her school career.

The upshot was that, after doing very well on her entrance exams, Kagome was now a first year student at a small private academy on the opposite side of Tokyo. Sure, it required a nasty commute from the shrine every morning, but Kagome could put up with it. She liked the school, and no one else from her junior high was going there, so she managed to dodge any rumors about her string of illnesses. It also meant, along with the fact that she was a year older than her classmates, that she was allowed to be a just a little distant from everyone else. She preferred it that way; the Sengoku Jidai had seen to it that she would never really be able to the silly, care-free child she once had been, and the dark powers after the shikon no tama ensure that she wouldn't let anyone that couldn't take care of his or her self too close. Kagome turned to focus more clearly on what her teacher was saying, resigning herself to a life of solitude.

It was a nice day, Kagome decided as she walked to her subway station after school. Too nice to be stuck for nearly an hour on the subway after a day of classes. She changed her plans slighting, deciding to take a detour to a park she knew of where she could take a walk, and maybe study for a while before going to face the dreaded subway. As she walked towards the park, she felt a tell-tale tingling on the back of her neck. _Here we go again_, she thought, _Dark spirit, or youkai with evil intent, behind me, right now._

"Stupid well." She muttered, digging a sharpened pencil out of her bag with which she could stab the... whatever it was this time to purify it. After the first few such attacks upon her arrival home, Kagome realized that all the times that she had gotten the creeps and thought that there was something following her, even when presented with evidence to the contrary, as a child, she had been sensing something spiritual stalking her. The episode with Mistress Centipede had triggered her mikonic abilities, and by extension, her ability to see the spiritual world. As the dark shadow loomed over her, and gave the usual demand for the shikon no tama in a thick, gloopy voice, Kagome calmly turned, and flicked the wrist of the hand holding her miko-ki charged pencil, stabbing her attacker. Immediately, it began to wail and dissolve while Kagome watched impassively.

"Maybe this time your friends will get the message; the shikon no tama is _not_ up for grabs. I worked too hard to gather the shards of this thing and purify them to give it up to the likes of_ you_." She murmured, her hand going to the strand of prayer beads around her neck, which included the shikon no tama. She turned on her heel, irritated. There went her good mood. Muttering darkly about stupid jewels that just couldn't go away under her breath, Kagome started a short cut that one of her classmates had mentioned to get to the subway, her desire to go to the park gone with her good mood. As she passed down an alley, she noticed a traditional Japanese building with a well-tended garden nestled in between two sky scrapers. It was pretty, and reminded her of several shrines and smaller temples that she had seen during the Sengoku Jidai. She smiled fondly, knowing that nostalgia would lead her past the building more than once. She turned to continue to the station, when she felt a familiar tugging sensation in her legs. Kagome stiffened. This was the sensation that had lead her into the well house, and into the well itself, after Buyo.

Hitsuzen, it seemed, had decided to play with the life of Kagome Higurashi once again.

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So, I've started a new fanfiction, this one being a cross-over between CLAMP's _XxxHoLiC_, and Rumiko Takahashi's _InuYasha: a Feudal Fairytale_. I'm going to ask you to notice something: this is set in the storyline of _XxxHoLiC_. There will be no well hopping, or anything of the kind over the course of this story. In fact, Kagome is the only character from _InuYasha_ that we'll really see, with, of course, occasionally visits from her family. This is more of an _XxxHoLiC _fanfiction than an _InuYasha_ one. I use Kagome because I think she will fit well with a certain character in _XxxHoLiC._ So, _please_ don't ask me to suddenly introduce an _InuYasha_ character, such as Kouga, Shippou, or Sesshoumaru. It isn't going to happen.

Now, for those of you who are glaring at me, muttering, "Yes, Jihadi, it's very nice that you've started a new story, but WHAT ABOUT _NEW HOME_?" I have some bad news: the chance of you getting an update on that front are slim.... very slim. Why? Because I can't think of anything to go with it, and in all honesty, I'm not very fond of the story anymore. If I don't come up with anything by August, I'm going to take it down, because I know it annoys _me_ when I find a story, and the writer just stopped writing it, and didn't bother to take it down once it became apparent that (s)he wasn't going to finish it. If, after that point, I ever do finish it, I will put it back up.


	2. Chapter One: Of Meetings and Payment

Own neither _XxxHoLiC _nor _InuYasha: a Feudal Fairytale_. Pity. I'd love to get my hands on the royalties they produce, and to be able to claim credit for the brilliant writing in _XxxHoLiC._ Alas, 'twas not meant to be!

For time framing purposes, _The Price of Hitsuzen_ starts just after chapter 14 of _XxxHoLiC_, meaning the travelers from _Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE _have just come to Yuuko's shop, and departed with the White Mokona. As for the _InuYasha_ timeline, this is canon following ONLY the anime, as I gave up reading the manga in disgust at roughly the same point as the anime stopped. I only know how the manga ended because, out of pure curiosity as to how Rumiko Takahashi _finally_ ended the thing, I read the last two chapters. So, this takes place roughly two and a half years after Kagome falls into the well for the first time, give or take a few months.

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Kagome knew better than to argue with hitsuzen. It wouldn't work, and besides, she had a sneaking suspicion that it would only cause hitsuzen to hate her even more than it already did, and the kami knew she couldn't afford _that_. So, she warily followed the tug hitsuzen's call, first entering the gated garden, then stepping onto the porch of the building. She raised her hand to knock on the closed door, when it was opened by two small girls.

"Welcome!" They chorused with bright smiles. Kagome smiled back, studying them.

"Thank you." While the two seemed happy enough, Kagome could see that their eyes were dull, and sensed a hollow void within them. She shivered slightly; as one who had once been in a similar position, she could tell that neither girl possessed a soul, although she didn't think that they had been stolen, as hers had been. Each girl moved to take one of her arms. The one on her left had long blue pig tails, and the one on her right had shoulder length neon pink hair, with a swirled bun on each side of her head, the unusual colors further leading Kagome to believe that these girls had been created without souls for whatever reason.

"You are the Master's guest!" The one with pigtails piped up cheerfully.

"You are the Master's guest!" The one with buns agreed, her voice equally bright. Kagome's eyebrows rose.

"If you say so." At her words, she found herself being towed along by the duo, and had to quicken her pace to keep from tripping over her own feet. Soon, she found herself in front of a set of sliding doors. The girls released her arms to open them, revealing a voluptuous woman in a rather revealing kimono reclining on a divan, with a long, narrow pipe in her hand. The pipe cast smoke throughout the room like incense, creating an air of mystery. Kagome was impressed in spite of herself; the woman was a master at creating a mysterious atmosphere, and being the most mysterious part of it. She, however, refused to be caught up in it. She looked the woman right in the eye, and spoke.

"Hello. I'm assuming that you're the one hitsuzen decided that I needed to meet?"

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Yuuko had to admit to being surprised by this girl. She had, of course, known for a few days now that the miko of the shikon no tama would be coming to visit, which was why she had given Watanuki the day off, but she had not expected the girl to be quite so aware of hitsuzen, and the way it played games with her life. Nor had she expected someone quite so confident in herself. In that respect, the girl was completely unlike Watanuki. Yuuko smiled.

"There are no coincidences in this world," she began her usual, highly mysterious line.

"Of course there aren't. When push comes to shove, hitsuzen decides every meeting." The girl agreed. Yuuko's eyebrows rose, and a smile played across her lips. She was going to like working with this one a great deal more than working with Watanuki.

"Indeed. An interesting answer for one so young." She said with a nod.

"Interesting answer! Interesting answer!" Maru and Moro repeated gleefully. A slightly bitter look crossed the girl's face.

"Let's just say that I'm not as young as I was a few years ago." She answered.

"Your name?" Yuuko asked, curious to see how the girl would react. She was not disappointed when the girl's expression immediately turned wary.

"...Kagome. Yours?"

"Yuuko. Your birthday?" At these words, Kagome's expression went from wary to flat.

"Why do you need to know?" Yuuko smiled approvingly.

"I don't. You are wise to hide such secrets carefully." Kagome's expression was still guarded as she answered.

"Thank you... I think. Would you mind telling me where I am?" Yuuko's smile widened.

"You are in my shop."

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"You are in my shop." Kagome nodded, eyes narrowed slightly. She was not stupid. She could feel the spiritual power rolling off this person. Whatever she did here, it wasn't likely to be selling groceries, or the like. This shop had something to do with power, even if Kagome couldn't tell if Yuuko worked for good... or for evil.

"Really? What do you sell?" She asked dryly. Yuuko's smile once again turned mysterious.

"This is a shop that grants wishes... for the appropriate price." That phrase was more illuminating than Kagome had expected. Yuuko was, in a way, like the shikon no tama. She would grant your wish... but you would have to pay a price for it, eventually. Usually, the price was equal to what you got from the wish, but something you would never want to pay. Kagome had seen _that_ game played out a few too many times in the Sengoku Jidai.

"I see. And I suppose that there's a reason why hitsuzen dragged me in here?" She asked, politely.

"Dragged you in here! Dragged you in here!" The girls repeated happily. Yuuko's smile widened, if that was possible.

"But of course. You can only enter the shop if you have a wish. So... what do you wish? I can grant it." Kagome was a bit startled. Yes, of course she had a wish- more than one, as a matter of fact- but so did everyone. That wasn't, she knew, _quite_ what Yuuko meant. Kagome was pretty sure that what she had _really_ meant was 'You can only enter the shop if you have a wish that requires assistance to grant.' A student who wished for a good grade on a test, for example, wouldn't be able to enter the shop, because he or she was fully capable of getting that grade through their own hard work. A normal person who wished for a solution to a problem with an evil spirit, however, would most certainly be able to enter, as he or she would need as much help as he or she could get to deal with the problem. What wish did _Kagome_ have that would meet those requirements. Her fingers went to play with the strand of prayer beads, a nervous habit that she had developed over the last year. Then it hit her. Of _course_ she had a wish that required help to be achieved. She was just very, very careful never to phrase it as such, out loud, or in her mind, because she was very much afraid of the consequences.

"I can tell you have power, Yuuko-san." She said slowly, as she reached up to unfasten the prayer beads from around her neck, "Which means that you should know what this is." Kagome set the strand of beads down on a small table next to Yuuko's divan. Yuuko nodded.

"But of course. What person of power wouldn't recognize the famed shikon no tama?"

"Then you will understand why I don't really feel comfortable using the word 'wish' around it." At Yuuko's nod, Kagome continued. "I would very much appreciate it if the shikon no tama would disappear forever, so that it can never be called upon again to do either harm, or good. I want it gone. Completely gone, never to come back. The only thing I know of that might possibly do that is to make a pure and unselfish... request of it, but I'm not stupid enough to believe that it's possible to do such a thing. Any such... request would be selfish by definition" Her eyes looked challengingly into Yuuko's. "Can you grant my... request?"

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Yuuko was only half surprised at the girl's unusual wish. Most would have been selfish, and gone for the wish of opening up the well on her shrine again, but Kagome was intelligent enough, and aware enough, to realize that this wasn't what she really and truly wanted, or needed. What, exactly, Kagome needed, Yuuko doubted the girl herself knew. It was one of those things that only someone who could watch from the outside would be able to realize at first. What the girl needed was to find what she was meant to do in her own time. Having the shikon no tama hanging around her neck was a hindrance to that, forcing Kagome to remain stuck in the past, focusing on her former quest, and the shikon no tama itself. For her to move on with her life, the shikon no tama had to go, and the only way a miko such as Kagome would release it was if she was certain that it could do no more damage to anyone.

And that was something only Yuuko could arrange.

"Yes, I can. For a price."

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Kagome was startled by the prompt answer, and immediately went even deeper into caution mode.

"And what price, exactly, would that be?" Yuuko smile curved her lips again.

"Your price would come in two parts. First, the well you used in your travels– yes, I know about those– will never work for you again. You would never be able to return to the Sengoku Jidai." Kagome supposed she shouldn't have been surprised by the fact that Yuuko knew about the well, and her quest. The woman had power, after all, and she was certain that any fore-teller, or... whatever you called the opposite of a fore-teller, would be able to tell what she had spent a little more than a year of her life doing. Kagome nodded.

"That would be acceptable. However, as the well doesn't exactly work now, something tells me that wouldn't come _near_ covering the whole price." Yuuko nodded approvingly.

"Very good. No, that wouldn't cover even half of your price. As you said, the well isn't working now, and just the _possibility_ of it letting you through in the future isn't worth that much. Even you have started to give up on that, I believe." Kagome looked down, and nodded. Recently, she had only been jumping into the well because she had to try, even as she was almost certain that it wouldn't work. "Then it's definitely not valuable enough. To cover the rest of the price for your wish, you will work here, as a part-time job of sorts, until your debt is paid. Then, I would grant your wish." Kagome bit her lip, considering. Working in Yuuko's shop would certainly drag her into confrontations with spirits and youkai, which wouldn't be good as long as she had the jewel, but... did she really want to leave that world behind? Now that she knew it was there, and _it_ knew that _she_ was, she would always, _always_ be a part of it. Working at Yuuko's would ensure that she had _some_ clue of what was going on in the unseen world, and possibly give her better tools than simple purification to deal with it. It was a good arrangement for her all around. Even the well closing was, in the end, to her benefit. There would be no more pining over something that she could not have, because this time, she had made the choice to give it up herself. Her mind made up, she turned to Yuuko.

"It's a deal. When do I start?" The older woman smiled, looking very smug.

"You start tomorrow afternoon. I have another part-timer, a boy named Watanuki. He has the day off today, but tomorrow he can show you the ropes." Kagome nodded, and turned to leave. As she walked out the first set of sliding doors, Yuuko called out to her. "Do remember, Kagome-chan, hitsuzen called you here. You and I, and you and Watanuki, for that matter, were meant to meet." Kagome turned her head back to look at Yuuko, a look of defiance on her face.

"Hitsuzen may have called me here, and it may have dealt me this hand, but _I'm_ the one who plays the cards, Yuuko-san. You and I were meant to meet, yes, but beyond that? My decisions are my own." And with that, Kagome left the shop, heading for the subway.

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So, here's the second chapter of _The Price of Hitsuzen_. I hope you all enjoyed it as much as you did the last one. It's significantly longer, which I imagine everyone appreciates. Now we all know what's in store for Kagome. Hopefully, she'll take being Yuuko's lackey better than Watanuki does. What do you think?

I received a rather pleasant surprise this morning, when I opened my email inbox. You see, concealed within were a grand total of fourteen story alert emails and six favorite story emails for _The Price of Hitsuzen, _in addition to four reviews. I posted this story less than twenty-four hours ago. The fact that it's received this many signs of favor already warms my writer's heart. Thanks to everyone, especially Lunamonki, kakashixangela, LeafeKnight7, and Bishounen'sFoxyMiko for reviewing!


	3. Chapter Two: Of Madness and Astrology

Neither _XxxHoLiC _nor _InuYasha _belong to me, as they belong to CLAMP and Rumiko Takahashi respectively. Nič.

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The next day found Kagome in a rather good mood. She actually had a _purpose_ again, even if it was only a part-time job, and would probably lead her to have to study on the subway trip back to the shrine, but still! She was actually contributing to society again, and the thought of not being useless deadweight made her positively gleeful. She was especially looking forward to meeting this new co-worker of hers, Watanuki, she thought Yuuko had called him. Maybe, just possibly, Watanuki would be able to take care of himself against the unseen world, so she could have a friend again, without panicking that he would be killed because of what stalked her. That thought sent Kagome to Yuuko's, practically skipping.

At the street just before Yuuko's shop, she stopped abruptly, tilting her head to the side, and stared curiously at the figure in front of her. It was boy, about her age, dressed in the uniform of her school. What intrigued Kagome was that boy was talking to himself, rather loudly, about 'his lovely Himawari-chan', whom she guessed was the boy's crush, or possibly, judging from the volume of his internal dialogue and the slightly demented fashion in which he was moving about, his hallucination, and seemed not to realize that he had an audience. After all, Kagome wasn't the only one staring at such bizarre actions. Kagome shook her head. Boys. Even after spending so much time with some of the most quintessential boys on the planet during the Sengoku Jidai, she _still_ didn't understand them, and probably never would, either. His euphoria seemed to dampen slightly, Kagome noted, as he turned down a side street. Perhaps he was on some sort of drug? That would explain a great deal, she mused, absently noting that she took the same side-street, which would lead her to Yuuko's shop. Suddenly, her eyes widened. The boy had just opened the gate to Yuuko's shop. That meant... no. Kagome _refused_ to believe that her co-worker was insane, _or_ on drugs. She _had_ to remain optomistic! She paused outside the gate for a few moments, fervently praying to the kami that the boy was _not_ Watanuki, then followed him into the shop, where she was immediately greeted by the sound of conversation.

"– The Mokonas are very good. There's more to what they can do." Yuuko was saying. Kagome blinked as she headed towards the voices. What was a Mokona? Oh well.

"It's fine. I'm really happy today!" Kagome blinked. Now that the boy had calmed down a bit, he seemed quite normal. She entered the room, knocking quietly on the door, and took in the scene. Yuuko was standing on the other side of the room, near the divan Kagome had seen yesterday, with a small, black creature that resembled a cross between a bunny and a manjuu bun with a bright blue jewel on its forehead, which Kagome assumed was a Mokona. Between Yuuko and herself stood the boy she had seen earlier, whom Kagome was now almost positive must be Watanuki, as he had donned a white shift and head scarf, presumably to keep his hair and uniform clean as he worked since Kagome had last seen him.

Yuuko had noticed Kagome's entry, and smiled, sending a shudder down Kagome's spine. She knew that smile. She had seen a very, very similar one on Sesshoumaru's face just before he killed someone who had particularly offended him. Watanuki, Kagome figured, was going to be treated to something rather unpleasant.

"Are you?" Yuuko queried lazily. "Good. That means you'll be able to train your new co-worker more effectively." Watanuki stiffened, and proceeded to go back into what Kagome decided to refer to as 'psychotic rant mode'.

"What? You dragged _another _innocent person into your web? Where is he?" He yelled, accompanied by large, slightly demented gesturing. Yuuko laughed.

"_She_ is right behind you. Hello, Kagome-chan. Are you ready to get to work?" Kagome bowed as Watanuki turned to stare at her, stunned.

"Yes, Yuuko-san. I take it that this is the boy you mentioned yesterday?" She asked politely. Watanuki's jaw dropped. Evidently, whatever he had been expecting in his co-worker was _not_ Kagome.

"Indeed. Kagome-chan, this is Watanuki Kimihiro. Watanuki, this is Kagome-chan."

"And I'm Mokona Midoki!" The black creature in Yuuko's hand piped up, before leaping to Kagome's shoulder. "Nice to meet you! Shake hands?" Kagome giggled.

"But of course, Mokona." She gently took Mokona's tiny paw between her thumb and forefinger, and shook hands.

"You're really pretty! And not stupid, like _he _is."

"_Hey! _Why you little manjuu bun!" Watanuki snarled. Mokona, Kagome, and Yuuko laughed.

"Watanuki-kun, I don't think you're making a good first impression." Watanuki blushed, then stammered, before finally bowing to Kagome and saying.

"I'm Watanuki Kimihiro. It's a pleasure to work with you." Kagome bowed in return, careful not to send Mokona flying.

"And I'm Higurashi Kagome. Please take care of me, Watanuki-senpai." Watanuki nodded back.

"Now, Watanuki, Kagome, Mokona and I want another bottle of sake. Go get it!" Watanuki rolled his eyes.

"I think we're going to have to go buy some. Come on, Kagome-chan. I'll show you the fastest way to the liquor store. You're going to need to know it." Kagome blinked. Once Watanuki was out of psychotic rant mode, he was actually pretty normal, not to mention that he seemed fairly nice and polite. With a shrug, Kagome followed him. Once Watanuki had shown her where Yuuko kept a large glass jar in the kitchen labeled "Alcohol Money", and they were out of the shop, heading for the store, she worked up the courage to ask him a question.

"Watanuki-senpai, why do you work for Yuuko-san?" The boy snarled in anger and frustration.

"The stupid witch trapped me in her web! All I wanted was to stop having spirits chase after me, and now I'm her male servant!" Kagome was quickly coming to recognize the signs of Watanuki entering psychotic rant mode. She had a feeling that she would become even more familiar with them as time went on. Then it hit her.

"Spirits were chasing you, Watanuki-senpai? Why? Can you see them?" Watanuki sighed, slightly deflated.

"Yeah, I can see them. They've always chased me, ever since I was a kid and my parents died. Yuuko says it's because they can tell that I have power. Once I pay my debt, Yuuko said she'd grant my wish. I haven't been working for her very long, though, so I've probably got a long time before she'll grant it." Kagome nodded sympathetically.

"Dark creatures do tend to be attracted to power, especially if the one holding it doesn't have any way to defend themself." She agreed. Oh, how well she knew _that_ truth!

"Yeah, well, that's me. What about you? How did Yuuko trap such a cute girl in her web?" Kagome giggled at his choice of words, and the fact that he was tearing up slightly.

"I'm not that cute Watanuki-senpai. As to how Yuuko-san managed to 'trap me in her web', hitsuzen brought me into her store–"

"So you got dragged in there against your will too?" Watanuki interrupted eagerly. Kagome smiled and shook her head.

"Not exactly. I've dealt with hitsuzen enough to know when it's tugging me to a place, and I'm not stupid enough to try to fight it. I had no problems with entering Yuuko-san's shop, so it didn't drag me anywhere. As I was saying, though, Yuuko-san explained what she does, and offered to grant my... request to get rid of a particular magical object that I've been stuck protecting for the past few years. Like you, once I finish working off my debt, she will fulfil her part of our deal." Watanuki stared at her curiously for a moment.

"Why don't you just say that you wished for this object of yours to be gone, instead of saying that she offered to grant your request?" Kagome sighed.

"Because the object in question likes to grant certain things that start with W and end with 'ishes', and any time you say that word around it, you're just _asking_ for trouble." She explained. Watanuki looked slighlty confused.

"So it grants wishes? Why do you want that to go away?" Kagome sighed.

"Rather like Yuuko-san, for everything the shikon no tama, that's the name of the object, gives, it takes something of equal value away. Only, instead of trying to be as kind as possible with payment, like Yuuko-san, the shikon no tama seems to take a perverse delight in causing as much pain, agony, and suffering as it possibly can. Also unlike Yuuko-san, the shikon no tama is incapable of refusing to grant a wish, because, quite frankly, it's a chunk of crystal, and doesn't exactly have morals. In addition, it acts as a massive power booster to youkai and spirits, meaning that if something evil gets its hands on it, bad things tend to happen. Trust me, we'll _all_ be better off once it's gone for good." Watanuki nodded slowly.

"So it's like an even more evil form of Yuuko. I can see why you would want to get rid of it." Kagome nodded, suppressing a shudder.

_You have no idea, Watanuki-senpai. You have _no_ idea._

– _*** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** _– *** –

After their return from the liquor store (where Watanuki was surprisingly well-known), Yuuko immediately began to interrogate Watanuki about the cause of his former good mood, which in turn sent him into the more cheerful form of psychotic rant mode in which Kagome had first seen him.

"Himawari-chan said that according to her astrology book, she and I are compatible!" He called in triumph, tears of joy coming to his eyes. Kagome resisted the urge to hide her face in her hand, more than a little ashamed that her senpai at both school and work was an obsessive maniac about this poor girl.

"That's only if you say the sunshine, right?" Yuuko asked dryly. Watanuki's face took on a confused expression.

"Sun?" Kagome frowned. She had heard about this _somewhere_, even though she didn't really study astrology.

"Where the moon, or where Mars is, you can only find out if you match when you properly make the horoscope." Yuuko explained. Kagome nodded in understanding, Yuuko's words clicking into place along side what she remembered from the conversations she had heard between Miroku and Kaede, and later Kikyou, about horoscopes and drawing them up. While none of them had been gifted with foresight, they had all studied the art of astrology as part of their training, and could each manage a very basic horoscope. Miroku had drawn one up for her a few times, and his predictions, while vague and often unclear until a few minutes _after_ it would have been nice to know what they meant, they had always been accurate. Watanuki, on the other hand, looked even more confused than before. Yuuko turned to him, bringing her glass of sake to her lips. "You don't know?"

"Not all."

"Kagome-chan?" Kagome shrugged.

"Not a lot. I don't practice astrology myself, but I knew some people who did." Yuuko frowned.

"You know, Kagome-chan, that should be part of your training." She scolded. Kagome's arms crossed her chest as she looked down and away.

"There wasn't time, and astrology wasn't high on the list of things I needed to know." Yuuko nodded.

"A wise assessment, all things considered. Watanuki," She asked, turning to the boy, "Do you like fortune telling?"

"Nope, not at all." He answered flatly. Kagome could tell by his face that he was completely serious. Yuuko's smile once again turned evil.

"Ok, then let's go!" She announced, palm outstretched for Mokona to stand on. The little black creature looked delighted with the announcement. Kagome and Watanuki, on the other hand, were left a bit startled.

"What!" Watanuki yelled.

"Where?" Kagome asked, beat behind him.

"To go fortune telling!" Yuuko announced, smiling brightly. "Maru! Moro!" She called to the two girls who had brought Kagome into the shop the day before, "Help get the new clothes!"

"Okaaay!" They chorused happily.

"Mokona will go too!" Announced Mokona, and hopped onto the head of the blue haired girl.

"So how does it become this?" Watanuki yelled, once again entering psychotic rant mode, as Kagome looked out on the chaos with unabashed amazement.

"Is it always like this?" She asked Watanuki, stunned.

"Do you mean absolutely insane? Yes, IT'S ALWAYS CRAZY HERE!" Watanuki answered, shouting. Kagome backed up a pace.

"Alright, alright, calm down. So, the two girls are Maru and Moro? Which is which?" Watanuki paused, seemingly to get a hold of himself, before answering.

"Maru is the one with blue hair, and Moro is the one with pink hair. Don't ask for their full names. Ever. You don't want to know." Kagome cocked her head to the side.

"Why not? What are their full names?" Watanuki sighed.

"Maru-dashi and Moro-dashi." Kagome burst into giggles.

"Sh-she called them 'flashing' and 'streaking'? Oh... my! I knew Yuuko-san had an unusual sense of humor, but I don't know if I consider that cruelty or just odd!"

"Yes, well, she calls them Maru and Moro most of the time, and I'm not even sure the girls know what their names mean." Watanuki muttered. "They're both good kids, though, even if they do get a bit annoying, every now and then." Kagome smiled softly.

"I bet they are. Watanuki-senpai," She began slowly, biting her lip slightly and wondering how best to phrase this question, "Do you know why Maru and Moro don't have souls?" Watanuki gaped at her.

"Did Yuuko tell you that?" Kagome shook her head.

"No... I can sense it. Why?"

"She had to tell me, that's all. No, I don't know why they don't have souls. Yuuko hasn't told me." Kagome nodded slowly.

"That's what I thought you'd say. It was worth asking. Come on, let's get ready to go fortune telling, like Yuuko-san wants."

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Another day, another chapter. Wow. I'm updating really quickly. I have no idea how long this speedy updating will last, so enjoy it while you can!

Thanks again to all the people who have favorited, reviewed, or set alert on this story! It's really appreciated, and makes me feel, to steal an expression from _CardCaptor Sakura,_ all 'hanyaan'. So, much love goes out to you all! Thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter Three: Of Liars and Labyrinths

Look, people. I have lawyers in my family. I _know_ what happens to people who commit copyright infringement. I don't have the funding to do get away with it. Therefore, let it be known that I don't own _xxxHoLiC _by CLAMP or _InuYasha: a Feudal Fairytale_ by Rumiko Takahashi. If I randomly _do_ come into the possessions of those copyrights, then I'll let you know, because, to put it bluntly, I'll charge you to read this.

— ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---

Thus the quartet of Yuuko, Watanuki, Kagome, and Mokona set out upon an epic adventure to meet the great mysterious fortune-teller of Yuuko's acquaintance. Mokona was delighted to be carried by Kagome, who he claimed made so much less noise than Watanuki. Truthfully, Watanuki also seemed happy with the arrangement, something Kagome made a mental note to ask about later. However, his happy mood was soon punctured by Yuuko.

"I want to tell you what the deal is with 'divination'. Do either of you understand it?" The witch asked. Kagome shrugged.

"Sort of. I've only been to a full-fledged fortune-teller once, and I understand the general principal behind it, and payment, but not completely. It's natural, I guess, as I'm not a fortune-teller myself." Yuuko nodded in understanding.

"I suppose it isn't in your natural range of abilities. If you studied it, you would probably get the hang of it. Watanuki, I assume you don't understand it all?"

"I already said it!" The boy snapped, disgusted, "I don't have any interest!" Yuuko smiled sweetly at Kagome.

"But girls really like it! Divination, if you it understand, maybe you and Himawari will talk more! You might even be able to teach her something!"

"I WANT TO KNOW!" Watanuki yelled, immediately delighted and interested. Kagome tried to resist the urge to laugh at Watanuki's sudden change of attitude, and failed, dissolving into a strange choking fit. Meanwhile, Yuuko laughed openly.

"Magnificent smile, Watanuki! Good!" She complimented.

"So," Kagome said, once she had regained the ability to breathe, "The place we're going to right now?" She asked Yuuko.

"The place of a fortune-teller that I trust."

"A person that Yuuko trusts? Yuuko, you can just do it yourself, without being told by other fortune-tellers." Kagome shook her head.

"No, she can't. That's one of the few things I fully understand about fortune-telling. If you try to tell your own fortune, it gets totally messed up. You read too optimistically, or too pessimistically. Then there's the weird bit with predictions and automatic fore-telling that I totally don't understand. That's part of the reason why I'm not a big fan of fortune-telling." She explained. Watanuki looked slightly deflated.

"Oh. What's the other reason, Kagome-chan?" Kagome stiffened, her mind flashing back to words she had heard nearly two years earlier.

"_You will love him, but he will never be yours. That which brought you here will claim you as its own, until you take action against it."_

"There! Around the corner!" Yuuko pointed down the street. Kagome hurried forward, eager to escape Watanuki's question. She came to a stop in front of a house, with a sign in front saying "Fortune-telling". Kagome frowned, eyes narrowing.

_That's odd_, she thought, _Normally, I can sense fortune-tellers, because they have power, but I don't sense anything out of the ordinary here at all. _Her eyes narrowed further as she concentrated. _No, wait, there's something residual here, but not much. Whoever had power here came and went a while ago...._

"Eh?" Kagome heard Yuuko say behind her, followed by Watanuki's panting.

"What happened? Is it here?"

"It's not right." Yuuko said softly. Kagome could tell that Yuuko sensed the same thing she had. Or maybe it was just that the sign was a tad bit to conspicuous for a true fortune-teller. For a fake, however....

"The place is not right?" Watanuki asked, confused. Kagome fought the urge to roll her eyes. Watanuki reminded her of herself when she had first fallen down the well, pathetic, useless, and _completely _clueless. She supposed she couldn't blame the older boy; he hadn't had the same lessons she had, after all.

"It's the right place," Yuuko said flatly, "But it's not right." Kagome nodded, underscoring Yuuko's sentiment.

"Then, are we going back?" Watanuki asked, confused.

"Let's give it a try!" Yuuko said with a slightly angry expression. "I want to know what kind of divination is in her 'field' of power!" Kagome resisted the urge to shiver. That look screamed 'I'm going to send the fake off to the lowest level of Hell if it's within my power!', and Kagome was quite happy not to be on the receiving end.

They were escorted into a prettily decorated room, and all three were handed questionnaires, Kagome glanced at the questions, then turned to Yuuko.

"This is to collect information on the subject of divination?" She asked, confirming her suspicions that this fortune-teller was a fake.

"I suppose I need to put down the truth?" Watanuki asked cautiously.

"Anything will do!" Yuuko said brightly, "Anyway, this is all for your 'fortune-telling'... if you fake it, you must take the consequences." Watanuki gulped.

"I will be truthful." Kagome giggled, filling out her own questionnaire truthfully... except for moving her birthday by a few days from July 1 to July 3. Somehow, she doubted the fortune-teller would require pinpoint accuracy, as the questionnaire hadn't questioned her about the time, or location of her birth. July 1 and 3 were both dates within the realm of Cancer, at any rate. She and Watanuki passed their completed surveys to the maid, who went to fetch the fortune-teller.

"Sorry for making you wait!" Kagome took one look at the fortune-teller, and resisted the urge to roll her eyes. This one had the low-cut, dramatic, black ensemble down to an art form. Watanuki stood.

"Please be of guidance to me." He asked with a bow. Kagome stood, and followed suit murmuring

"And me as well." The fortune-teller immediately disregarded them, and turned to Yuuko.

"Are you the one?" Yuuko shook her head.

"I'm here to chaperone them." She explained. The fortune-teller looked between Yuuko and the high school students, then back, before finally glancing at Mokona, who sat next to Kagome. She made no comment, and took her seat.

"Please, relax." She said sweetly as she took the questionnaires.

"She's miles from Yuuko!" Kagome heard Watanuki mutter. Yuuko turned on him in a flash.

"I can hear that, you know!" She snapped.

"Oh no! The voice in my mind!" Watanuki whimpered, causing Kagome to hide her eyes with her hand.

"Watanuki-senpai..." The fortune-teller giggled, distracting Yuuko.

"Then let's begin." She said, still smiling.

"Y-yes..." Watanuki stammered. Kagome nodded in agreement.

"Young man... Your father is no longer here!" The fortune-teller stated firmly. Watanuki recoiled.

"What?" He stammered, then nodded dejectedly. "...That's right. He passed away when I was young." The fortune-teller nodded sadly.

"Girl, your grandfather... he stands upon the brink." Kagome blinked, resisting the urge to laugh. Jii-chan was standing on the brink, alright... on the brink of murdering Souta for continually destroying his 'priceless artifacts' during mess ups in his target practice for soccer. Somehow, she didn't think that was _quite _what the fortune-teller had in mind.

"Yes... I suppose he is." She agreed. The fortune-teller smiled at her reassuringly.

"Don't worry, he will be in a better place, if he falls." Kagome kept her face schooled blank.

_Oh yes, because Jii-chan will be soooo much better off in prison for murdering his grandson!_ The fortune-teller turned her attention back to Watanuki.

"Your mother?"

"Also dead." Kagome felt a stab of pain for Watanuki, and anger that the fortune-teller would play on his emotions like this.

"Any siblings?"

"None."

"So you've had a lot of hardships since you were young?"

"Oh, you can tell!" Watanuki asked, astonished.

_Of course she can tell, silly! _Kagome thought in exasperation, _Don't _all_ kids who lose both their parents early in life have it hard?_ The fortune-teller turned back to Kagome.

"Girl, your emotions are volatile, and you are loving and protective. You are very close with your family?"

"Yes." Kagome nodded, wondering if she was supposed to be impressed that the woman had basically read her the definition of a Cancer from an astrology guide. The fortune-teller moved back to Watanuki.

"You're living by yourself now?"

"Yes, I live in an apartment."

"You also possess self-reliance and strong independence, and you are optimistic in life." _ Like every other Ares!_ Kagome thought, irritated.

"You're good at domestic chores, aren't you?" Kagome glanced at Watanuki's uniform. It was clean, and if he lived alone....

"I have no dislike for them." The fortune-teller turned back to Kagome.

"Sports?"

"Archery." She answered calmly.

"And I imagine you're quite open to strangers." The fortune-teller added. Kagome shrugged.

"I guess." The fortune teller smiled, and turned back to Watanuki.

"You are energetic, and you seem to have a bright mind."

"Not really..." Watanuki muttered, blushing.

"Recently, you are bothered by social relationship problems."

"Umm, yes. You can say that."

_Like every other teenage boy!_ The fortune teller looked back at Kagome.

"And you as well, my dear." Kagome fought the urge to roll her eyes.

"Who isn't?" She answered sweetly.

"But it's no big deal, for either of you! Young man, you're an extremely honest person, so if you treat others with sincerity, they will understand you! My dear, your kindness shines like a light, drawing others to you. If you make a decision regarding your relationships with others, stay the course, no matter how much you may wish to change your mind!"

_That's what I'm doing... and that's what's causing the social relationship problems!_

"Will that work?" Watanuki asked eagerly.

"Isn't that what I've said?" Yuuko asked dryly.

"Is there anything else that's bothering you?" The fortune-teller asked sympathetically.

_You're a fortune-teller.... shouldn't you already know?_

"Um, yeah... Well, there is, kind of...."

"Is it something you would prefer not to tell?" Kagome inspected Watanuki as he screwed up his courage, and tried to answer.

_Probably something to do with the spirits chasing him._ She thought meditatively.

"Never mind then! It's the heart that counts."

"Eh?"

"Do you know that negative thoughts will make everything unpleasant? If you try hard to look on the bright side of everything, I think your world will change! Maybe this sounds difficult, but if you were to stop because of that, you wouldn't be able to make any differences, so fear not, and try!"

"Y-yes..." Watanuki seemed a bit disappointed.

_I don't blame him_.

"What about you, dear?" The fortune-teller asked Kagome, who decided to play it up.

"Well... the guy I like...."

"Will surely like you back, if you keep your eyes up towards the sky! Like I told your friend, unpleasant thoughts make everything unpleasant! Anymore queries?" Yuuko looked straight into the eyes of the fortune-teller.

"How's the weather tonight?" The fortune-teller smiled.

"Like the weather forecast says, the weather will be fine!" Yuuko smiled slightly.

"...Really." Kagome hid a smile, happy that she had stashed an umbrella in Mokona's bag. Judging from Yuuko's expression, they were in for some rain.

"Yuuko-san?" Watanuki asked, confused.

"The time is up." The maid said quietly.

"Extend this session?" The fortune-teller asked, a bit eagerly. Yuuko stood.

"No. It's enough." Kagome nodded in agreement, and got to her feet, gathering Mokona on her way. Watanuki just looked confused, but also stood, and joined them in walking out.

– ***– *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** –

"That was indeed a proficient fortune-teller!" Watanuki said cheerfully, as the group sat in a small park near the house. Kagome and Yuuko stared at him in shock, stunned at his gullibility.

"Proficient?" Yuuko asked dryly.

"Because... she said right away 'your father is not around'." He answered eagerly.

"But.... you can mean two things by that." Kagome said quietly, looking down at the ground from her perch on the edge of a bench.

"Huh?"

"'Your father's passed away, he's not alive anymore.'" Yuuko stated coolly, "'Your father is not with you any longer, but he is still alive'... The sentence can be explained either way, whether alive or dead!"

"It was you who stated your father had died, Watanuki-senpai." Kagome agreed. "And you'll notice that she didn't pick up on the fact that my father is dead, as well."

"But, she also said that I didn't have an easy life since the time when I was young."

"I think... for children who lost their parents when they were young, life is never easy." Yuuko said quietly. Kagome nodded in agreement, then continued.

"Possessing self-reliance, being strongly independent, and being optimistic in life, these are the traits of Aries that are most widely used, just like having volatile emotions, being loving, and being protective are for Cancer, _my _astrological sign. Every horoscope book ever published will tell you that!"

"What about being good in domestic chores?" Watanuki asked desperately. Kagome raised an eyebrow.

"If you'd ever seen my little brother's school uniform, and compared it to yours, you wouldn't have to ask." She said dryly. Yuuko laughed.

"Though you said you live by yourself, your uniform is clean, and tidy. Wouldn't that be impossible if you couldn't handle household chores by yourself?" she asked the startled boy.

"She also asked if I am bothered by relationships with others..."

"Like I said in there, who isn't?" Kagome asked bluntly. Watanuki was silent.

"Treating others with sincerity... this is common sense, not advice!" Yuuko muttered darkly. Kagome nodded in agreement.

"And her advice to me was complete garbage- most of my social problems are _caused _by the fact that I'm doing exactly what she told me, even if I _am _causing them deliberately!"

"When you were asked if you had any other problems, Watanuki, were you thinking about your ability to see the supernatural?" Yuuko asked.

"..Yes."

"Do you remember what her suggestion was?"

"She said 'from the heart'..."

"If you could precent yourself from seeing the supernatural by will alone, wouldn't you have done so a long time ago?"

"She never expected anything supernatural." Kagome agreed. "She thought it was trouble in your love life, or something. She said what she did, because they covered a lot." Then Kagome laughed. "And let's not forget that the guy I like, or, well, used to like? Yeah. The last time I saw him was on his _wedding day_. He's _not _going to like me back, no matter _how _much I 'look towards the sky'. Besides, it's not like I'm ever going to see him again."

"...So in other words, that fortune-teller..." Watanuki started, depressed. Yuuko sniffed.

"She didn't detect Mokona, did she? If she had any magical power, she would have reacted to Mokona."

"One _can_ be a fortune-teller without magical power," Kagome mused, "But it's tricky, and she didn't even look at our surveys, so she was _implying_ that she had power. And I'm pretty sure that's against some sort of unspoken rule of fortune-telling...."

"She broke the rule by pretending to have power." Yuuko said flatly.

"The fortune-teller you trust isn't of that kind?" Watanuki asked, hopefully.

"No..." Yuuko said slowly, then stood. "Let's look for that person. I want you to know what a real fortune-teller is like." Swiftly, she took out a yellow handkerchief, spread it flat on her palm, and held it out to Watanuki. "Fold it in half."

"O-ok..." Watanuki did so, as Kagome and Mokona watched, curious.

"Fold it again." Watanuki did. Yuuko swished her hand over the folded handkerchief, summoning a magic circle. Kagome leaned forward, intrigued. She had not really had the chance to watch true witches and sorcerers at work in the Sengoku Jidai, she hadn't had the time, but she had always found their methods interesting. "Seeking things, seeking people, seeking places. Seeking things, seeking people, places ought to be looking for. Show the way! Thing that flies, fly to the person that I'm seeking." With those words, the handkerchief rose, and took the shape of a butterfly.

"A butterfly?" Watanuki asked, confused.

"Great, if it's a butterfly, it means that the person is near. Just follow it!" The group took off after the bright yellow butterfly. Hurrying alongside Yuuko, Kagome asked.

"Yuuko-san, the handkerchief turns into something besides a butterfly?"

"Uh-hum. It will turn into a bird or something similar if it's far." The group continued to follow the butterfly, until it came to rest on the gate of a small house. Once they reached it, the butterfly crumpled back into a handkerchief, which Yuuko replaced in her pocket.

"Found it!" She said, delighted.

"What? Here?" Watanuki asked, startled.

"Right, this is the place." Kagome agreed, sensing the striving power of a fortune-teller all around the house.

"But there's no sign, and it's an ordinary house!"

"Oh, there's a sign, alright, Watanuki-senpai." Kagome said softly, "You just don't know how to read it." Watanuki glanced askance at Kagome.

"Kagome-chan, you sound reeeeally creepy right now..."

"Yuuko, nice to see you here." The teenagers whirled to face an old woman who had appeared in the doorway to the house. "I was expecting you." Kagome could sense the strength of this woman's gift, and believed her words. Yuuko ran forward to embrace her.

"It's been a long time!" She said happily.

"Indeed," the old fortune-teller agreed, "And Yuuko hasn't changed at all!" She then turned her attention to Mokona, who was hiding in Kagome's purse, as he had been for most of the trip. "Adorable. And what's your name?"

"Mokona Modoki! Shake hands!" The old woman laughed.

"So it's Mokona! Shake hands!" She reached up to take Mokona's paw, much like Kagome had earlier.

"She can see Mokona?" Watanuki asked, awed. Kagome smiled.

"Of course she can, Watanuki-senpai. She has power." The old woman chuckled.

"I would expect a young priestess as powerful as yourself to be able to tell." Kagome blushed.

"I'm not that powerful..."

"Now, now, just because someone told you that for his own reasons, doesn't mean that it's true." The old woman scolded. Kagome looked away.

"Yes, Obaa-san." The old woman turned to Watanuki next.

"It's very admirable that you live alone at this young age!" She congratulated him. Watanuki looked as though he had been hit with a sledge hammer.

"W-what!" The old woman headed back into the house, calling

"Don't just stand around here, come in!" Over her shoulder. Kagome followed, giggling.

"Can I help you with anything, Obaa-san?" She asked politely.

"Yes, dear. The kitchen is in there, can you fetch us some tea?" The old woman asked. Kagome nodded, and headed off to prepare tea. By the time she returned, everyone else was seated at a small circular table. Kagome set down the tray she was carrying, passed out cups, and poured everyone, even Mokona, a cup of tea.

"Now, dear, may I know your name? I've already asked this fine young gentleman." Kagome resisted the urge to laugh, knowing what Watanuki's reaction must have been like.

"Higurashi Kagome." She answered. The old woman nodded.

"Your grandmother's name, wasn't it?" Kagome nodded.

"Yes ma'am." The old woman got to her feet, and fetched a large, circular disk filled with sand, that had a pendulum hanging over it. From the top of the arch suspending the pendulum, there were two handles.

"What's this?" Watanuki asked.

"This is my divination tool." The old woman answered. "Come, put your hand here, Kagome-chan, you'll go after Watanuki-kun." Kagome nodded. The old woman took her seat opposite Watanuki, and set her hand on the other handle.

"May I know..." Watanuki asked tentatively, "Why don't you ask what I want to know.

"She already knows it." Yuuko answered calmly. "Watanuki is destined to be here... the fact that you came shows that there are things you yearn to know. So what Watanuki wants to know the most, she already knows." Kagome resisted the urge to shiver. Something similar had happened the last time she had visited a fortune teller, and the idea gave her the creeps. "She will correctly interpret the divinations. Only the conclusion will be told to the recipient. Anything else will not be spoken. Only what you want is given. This seems simple, but it's actually of great difficulty. Once foreseen and thus wanting to let others know what has been foreseen, no matter what. 'You will become this', or 'the future will be like this'. Those words, that's not the way of things."

"Why is that so?" Watanuki asked.

"'Because divination is a contract!'" Kagome said softly, quoting what Kaede had told her when she asked the same question after her own fortune-telling session. "It's an exchange, you see, between the diviner and the recipient."

"An exchange of what?" Watanuki asked, surprised. Kagome shrugged.

"Lots of things. Money, or possessions, usually, in exchange for information, even the occasional object that's so precious it's almost like someone's soul. But that's only if the diviner's putting their own soul at great risk."

"That reminds me of the rules at Yuuko's shop." Kagome nodded.

"Divinations are a lot like wishes, so the rules are really similar. That's the only reason I can actually follow them."

"But divinations like those in magazines aren't like this..." Watanuki began.

"Of course, divination comes in many forms, too." Yuuko interrupted. "For example, divination in magazines, almost everyone reads those just for fun, right? Even if one takes it seriously, the divination is not of a one-to-one basis. There are too many people, so the responsibility for the divination is scattered. However, in the case of a one-to-one divination, if the recipient is serious about the results, then the diviner has to answer that, with the best they can accomplish." Kagome nodded.

"It's the same as for any other job, or like the Law of Equivalent Exchange in _FullMetal Alchemist_; 'To obtain, something of equal value must be lost'. That applies whether what's lost is a possession, or time and effort, like we're giving Yuuko. That's just the way things work."

"Exactly." Yuuko agreed. "So pretending to have power that you don't possess to customer's sincerely wanting a divination is completely rude. No! To affect others' life decisions because of divinations that you made up is much more than just being rude! Because of that, true diviners will put their own life plans to risk in divination!" Watanuki's eyes widened.

"Rest assured, your parents are at peace." The old lady broke in softly, immediately catching Watanuki's attention. "They died during a severe road accident, to protect Kimihiro... but they are not in pain anymore, both are at peace. They are happy Kimihiro grew up to be such an excellent person." Watanuki's head was bowed, and Kagome wondered if he was about to cry. Goodness knew she was. That was so sweet, and so close to what she wanted to hear about her own friends.

"Is it..." Watanuki croaked out, "That's great..." Yuuko smiled softly, and Kagome lost the battle to hold back her tears. They began silently flowing down her face.

"Ah... but, that's strange, you're worried about seeing lots of things! Oh, I see, it brought you to my house." Kagome looked down at the sand covered disk, and gasped. Drawn into the sand was an elegant, elaborate butterfly design. "A butterfly," the old woman continued "Symbolizing a journey, a sign of change; you should be going through changes. And the reason for the changes has come into existence."

"Huh?"

"And now... there seems to be a girl you like. Since it'll be too boring knowing the outcome before hand, I won't tell you."

"EHH!" Watanuki cried.

"You'll also have a male friend whom you will always fight with, and your relations will run deeper."

"EH?"

"Isn't that all you want to ask?" The old lady said with a smile.

"You won't be able to pay the price if you continue asking!" Yuuko warned.

"Err..."

"Excellent! Kagome-chan, it's your turn!" The old woman said cheerfully, sweeping the design from the sand disk. Hesitantly, Kagome took Watanuki's former place, and set her hand on her handle, bracing herself for the worst.

"Hmmm...." The old woman said pensively as the pendulum swung, drawing a maze of twisting lines. Kagome bit her lip nervously. The last time she had gotten her fortune told, it had not brought her very cheerful results. Hopefully this time, things would go better. "Your friends are at peace." The old woman finally said, as the pendulum slowed. "They died to protect those they cared about.... they are pleased to be able to protect you now as they did in the past, especially the one affiliated with foxes." Tears began flowing down Kagome's face, silently. Her friends from the Sengoku Jidai were dead, even little Shippou.

"Th-thank you." She whispered.

"You have been hurt many times in the past," The old woman said softly, "Mostly because of the jewel you bear, which has claimed your life, but you are taking it back. The labyrinth. Your journey to control your own life will lead you down many twists and turns, and you may get hopelessly lost, but you will achieve your goal." Kagome smiled through her tears.

"Well, that's good."

"Indeed.... there is a young man in your future, but you don't need to know about the details just yet." Kagome's tears stopped, and her eyes widened.

"Huh?"

"And there is a female friend whom you will come to trust greatly." She continued.

"Really?"

"And that's all you were wondering about, correct?" Wordlessly, Kagome nodded. Yuuko smiled.

"Now, about their payment?" The old woman chuckled.

"Ahh, yes, payment. Watanuki-kun, you're good at cooking aren't you? Just make us up some dishes!"

"I've brought it." Yuuko added, and Mokona popped out of Watanuki's bag, holding a large bottle of champagne.

"I'd be delighted if you can whip up something from the things in my kitchen. And Kagome-chan, I believe you know how to make beads of protection." Kagome nodded.

"Yes, Obaa-san."

"All the necessary materials are in my closet. Please, make a set for my granddaughter." Kagome nodded, and rose to her feet to find the closet in question.

"These things will do?" She heard Watanuki ask in surprise.

"Dishes made from the heart, and a strand of prayer beads with true and genuine blessings upon them... how can they be called mere things? And you learned that from your father, who was a good cook, and Kagome-chan from her first mentor, who was like her grandmother?"

"I'll try my best!" Watanuki called cheerfully as he hurried into the kitchen.

"Mokona wants to help too!" Kagome smiled, then bowed.

"I will also do my best, Obaa-san." She said, then moved out of the room to find her supplies.

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Whew! This chapter was a lesson in why you shouldn't procrastinate! I meant to write the chapter this afternoon... then put it off so I could go into town for a few hours.... Then put it off so I could talk to a friend on Skype. The upshot is, that when I finally got started at around 10:30 pm, I figured I'd be done by 11:30 pm. 12:30 am tops. Well, some of you have anticipated the punchline. Because I wanted to get the entire fortune-teller arc in one chapter, it got longer. And longer. And longer. It's now 1:57 am. I hate life, sometimes.

Thanks to everyone who favorited/alerted this story, and hugs go out to all those who reviewed! All such things are much appreciated, and were part of the reason I decided to keep writing instead of getting some sleep!


	5. Chapter Four: Of Stories and Arrows

Oh, yes. Quite clearly, I own _xxxHoLiC _and _InuYasha_. Of course. They most certainly do _not_ belong to CLAMP and Rumiko Takahashi. No. Of course not! Whatever gave you that idea? It's not like they're published by them or anything.

Or, that's what I would say if I didn't know that copyright infringement could get me into _big_ trouble. Know it now, people: I do not own the characters, setting, and large portions of the plot line. Heck, I don't even own chunks of dialogue. Wish I did, but the sad fact is that I don't. I'm sure we'll all get over it eventually.

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On the first day that summer became so hot that anyone with sense wanted to melt into a puddle of goo and die, Kagome Higurashi took some time off from her part-time job. She was, with her employer's blessing, going to join a school club. Her target, so to speak, was the archery club. She was certain that she had the ability, thanks to a little more than a year in the Sengoku Jidai, aided and abetted by her mikonic powers, to do exceptionally well in the club. She just hoped that her skills hadn't gotten _too _rusty. She presented herself, as she had been told by the administration to do, to the club captain, a rather stressed looking third year student, who immediately started drilling her.

"Have you ever used a bow before?"

"Yes, senpai."

"Are you any good?" Kagome smiled serenely.

"I've been told so." _If the screams of multiple youkai in various stages of purification could be considered telling, I've been told that I'm _very_ good._

"Right." The senpai sounded skeptical. Kagome didn't blame him. Stupid first years

without any experience were probably half of the cause of his stressed and harried demeanor. "Look, here's how it's going to work. I'm going to tell the team that you're trying out. That means we'll clear the target area, so that if you mess up, nobody gets hurt. You'll have three arrows. If you hit within the three central rings or the bull's eye, then you're in the club as a full member, able to compete and everything, no questions asked. Hit the target, or manage at the very least to get the arrows in the right general direction, we'll put you in accelerated training. Do something stupid, and nearly hurt any onlookers, and you get to be flunky until we feel that you've learned enough to keep a repeat from happening. Are we clear?"

"Perfectly."

"Good. Let's get you a yukage and ippongake. Then we'll set you up with a bow and some arrows, and you can have at." Kagome resisted the urge to say that she didn't really _need_ the yukage or ippongake, as she'd learned how to use the bow without them, but something told her that it would be pointless to tell him. Meekly, she followed orders. The captain showed her a few spare bows that the school had lying around. "You'll want to get your own if you _do _manage to make the team." He told her firmly. Kagome could see why. She looked over all three bows, and concluded that two of them _might _be suitable. She picked up one of them, and almost immediately set it down; its balance was off. She picked up the remaining bow, before nodding.

"This one should work, senpai. I can see why I would want to get my own." The captain raised his eyebrows.

"What was wrong with the other two?" He asked dryly. Kagome looked him right in the eye and answered coolly.

"The balance was off in the one I picked up. The other one is showing signs of rot. You might want to get rid of it before some idiot tries to use it and it snaps on him." The captain blinked, obviously not expecting her to have good answers. Hastily, he moved her to the practice area.

"Alright club! We have another audition! Fall back!" He called. With mutters of annoyance, the club members did so, most glaring at Kagome. One boy, however, watched her with narrowed eyes, almost as if he was confused about something. It gave Kagome the shivers. She shook her head slightly, and proceeded to the appropriate point to take aim. She took her position carefully, knowing that her formal technique wasn't the best, lifted the bow over her head, and drew back the string, letting her eyes take on the slightly dreamy, determined cast that they always did when she shot. Swiftly, she released, immediately reaching for her next arrow, and shooting her two remaining times in quick succession, not bothering to check her aim until her third arrow was released, and she held the bow at her side. She resisted the urge to smirk as she observed all three arrows clustered neatly in the center of the bull's eye. The dojo was silent. She turned to the captain and smiled sweetly.

"So does this mean that I get to join the team?"

– *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** –

"Yuuko-san wants us to... _what?_" Kagome asked Watanuki in confusion as they cleaned out one of the back store rooms together. Watanuki sighed.

"Yuuko wants to 'help' me with my relationship with Himawari-chan, so she wants me to arrange for Yuuko, you, Himawari-chan, and me to spend a night telling 100 ghost stories at _Doumeki-baka's _shrine. Which means that _I _have to ask him!" He began slipping into psychotic rant mode, ignoring Kagome's slightly confused expression.

"I wonder why she wants to use Doumeki-san's shrine instead of mine." She murmured, then shrugged. "Maybe she just doesn't want to ride the subway for an hour. Who knows? Although.... Watanuki-senpai, what does Yuuko-san want us to wear for this?" Watanuki shuddered.

"That's almost as bad as having to ask _Doumeki-baka_ if we can use his shrine, and wants to join us! She wants us to wear _kimonos!_ I _hate _wearing kimonos! I look ridiculous!" Kagome stifled the urge to laugh, and wondered if she would be able to get away with wearing her miko regalia of white haori and red hakama. Knowing Yuuko, she rather doubted it.

– *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** – *** –

She was of course, right. That was why, three days later, she was standing outside of a decent sized shrine with Yuuko and Watanuki, sweltering in a homongi. She didn't own a yukata, as she normally wore her haori and hakama during festivals, and was therefore stuck in her the closest thing she had. She _could_ have taken up Yuuko's offer of a yutaka, but one look at the proffered robe, and the thought of what her grandfather, not to mention her _mother,_ would do to her if she _dared_ to wear something so low-cut outside of the shop had put a stop to _that_ notion _very_ quickly. She sighed in mild irritation, and felt up her sleeve for the pocketknife she had stashed there, in case she encountered _something_ while wearing this thing. Knowing her luck, it would definitely happen. A cute girl with pigtails, who was dressed in a yutaka like Yuuko ran up the path to the shrine. If Kagome had to hazard a guess, this would be the girl, Himawari, that Watanuki was.... well, it wasn't nice to say that a senpai was obsessed with someone, but under the circumstances, it was the best word Kagome could come up with to describe the relationship. She wondered if Himawari had noticed Watanuki's.... fierce dedication to her, or just figured that he was being funny. For Watanuki's sake, she hoped it was the latter.

"Sorry, I'm running a bit late!" She said cheerfully. "Hi, Watanuki-kun!"

"Hi, Himawari-chan!" Watanuki answered, going all teary eyed, Kagome assumed at the sight of Himawari dressed so cutely. The girl then turned to Yuuko and Kagome.

"I'm Kunogi Himawari. It's nice to meet Watanuki-kun's boss and co-worker!" Yuuko laughed, while Kagome bowed slightly.

"I'm Ichihara Yuuko, but it's fine to just call me Yuuko-san." Yuuko told the younger girl.

"Oh, yes, it's fine to call me Himawari-chan! And what's your name? You look familiar..." Himawari trailed off, looking at Kagome, who giggled slightly.

"I'm Higurashi Kagome. Kagome-chan is fine, though. I should hope I seem familiar; our school isn't that big! I'm in class 1-A."

"Ohhhhh, I see! It's nice to meet you, Kagome-chan!" Kagome smiled, and turned her attention to one of the many sakura trees on the shrine grounds. She inspected it carefully, sensing something slightly off about it, but not really sure what it was. Perhaps, Kagome thought, it wasn't so much a spirit, or something similar haunting or possessing it, as much as a mere dark presence, like the one that framed Himawari, not really noticeable until you stared at it for a while.

"That tree's supposed to be haunted." A voice said from her left. Kagome jumped, and whirled to see the boy who had stared at her so oddly during her archery club audition. In fact, he'd done the same thing the other two practices in which she'd participated. Now that she wasn't trying to focus on shooting her bow, and dodge his gaze, Kagome could feel the quiet thrum of power about him. It was a bit unkempt, rather like the boy's hair, and definitely untapped, making Kagome feel pretty sure that he had no idea it existed, let alone used it. She smiled at him.

"Is it? The ghost must be doing good things for the blossoms then, because it's beautiful." The boy chuckled.

"I guess it does. So, you must be Watanuki's co-worker. I've seen you at archery club. You're good." Kagome beamed.

"Thank you! Yes, I work with Watanuki-senpai. My name is Higurashi Kagome. And yours?"

"Doumeki Shizuka." Kagome's eyes widened before she burst into giggles.

"So _you're_ the one Watanuki-senpai has been griping about all week. He _really _didn't want to ask you about using your shrine, you know. Yuuko-san didn't leave him a lot of choice." Doumeki chuckled.

"Knowing Watanuki, I believe it. Have you figured out how to get him to stop going on one of his rants? If you have, Higurashi, I'd like to know. I'd appreciate the quiet." Kagome laughed outright.

"I bet you would!" She agreed. "And if I had a clue how to stop him once he goes into psychotic rant mode, I'd tell you. Unfortunately, the best you can do is change the subject abruptly, and that doesn't always work." She rolled her eyes, "_Especially_ if he's ranting about how cute and wonderful Himawari-chan is. And please, call me Kagome." Doumeki sighed.

"It was worth asking."

"It was indeed."

"So, this must be Doumeki-kun." Yuuko said quietly from behind them, making Kagome jump. Doumeki turned to face her, his face passive.

"Yeah, that's me." She looked the boy over, then turned to Watanuki.

"Watanuki, it's best if you get along with Doumeki." She called. Watanuki immediately went onto the defensive, screaming

"I don't want to!" At his employer. Kagome sighed, covered her eyes with her hand, and shook her head.

"Watanuki-senpai..." She groaned.

"Ahh, slowly you'll understand." Yuuko assured him.

"Slowly... what does that mean?" Watanuki asked, bewildered out of his borderline rant.

"Oh, I forgot, sometimes being highly mysterious and confusing works to keep from ranting too." Kagome murmured to Doumeki, who had to stifle another laugh.

"I can tell. Come on, let's go inside." The group trekked into the room Doumeki had set up for their night of story-telling. There was a faint shadow on the rice paper wall from the room next door. Kagome's eyes narrowed, making out the form of a human form lying on a... table? Some sort of flat surface, at any rate. She glanced inquiringly at Doumeki, who had stayed next to her. He followed her gaze to the shadow on the wall before his mouth twisted up into a wry smile.

"Trust me, unless something very odd happens, the person next door won't particularly care what we're doing in here." He assured her. His words clicked into place for the daughter of a shrine family. Comprehension lit up her face as she smiled a wry smile of her own.

"I've discovered that the dead usually don't, over the years." She agreed. "My family also runs a shrine." she explained to his inquiring look. He nodded in understanding.

"Ah! It looks like it's about to rain outside, with sweltering wind. It's the perfect atmosphere to tell one hundred ghost stories." Yuuko said, touching the rice paper covering of one of the windows. Kagome shivered. She couldn't agree more. This weather practically _begged _ghosts to come out and play. Mayu had loved such weather, she remembered. Her lips curved into a smile. At least she had a good story for the first round.

"We can tell ghost stories in the shrine today?" Watanuki demanded, his expression was a mixture of anger and annoyance, and Kagome could see psychotic rant mode coming on fast. "You said before that it was being used today." Kagome shook her head.

"Watanuki-senpai, if Doumeki-senpai didn't think we should be using the shrine to tell ghost stories today, he wouldn't have let us use it. Trust me, I know what it's being used for, and believe me, it's fine. Actually," she said, her lips twisting upwards, "It makes the atmosphere even more... complete." Doumeki and Yuuko laughed at her words, leaving confusion on the faces of Himawari and Watanuki. Doumeki turned to Yuuko.

"That thing you wanted has been prepared." He told her, gesturing to the basin of water in the center of the room.

"Thank you. Please take this," she handed Watanuki an unlit candle on a stand, "And place it near the water basin." Watanuki followed orders. "Now, the candle..." Yuuko struck a match, and lit it. After blowing out the match, she turned to the four teenagers, and passed each of them a candle. "Everyone, take one. After lighting the candle, put each of them in the four candle holders at the corners of this room." The ritual sent Kagome flashing back to a memory from the Sengoku Jidai of a night spent with Shippou, Miroku, and Sango in the latter pair's new home while InuYasha was off with Kikyou.

"_Now, Shippou, Kagome, and my lovely Sango, put your candle in one of the corners of the room. It will set up a kekkai to ensure our safety from anything that might come after the shikon."_

With a hard swallow, Kagome followed orders. Clearly, Yuuko was worried about something. Or maybe she wasn't, and was merely being cautious. She didn't know, and, in all honesty, she wasn't sure she wanted to know. With Yuuko, sometimes it was best to be left in the dark. Yuuko smiled as the five regrouped in the center.

"Now, we're ready!" She said cheerfully.

"Do we need to prepare for the one hundred ghost stories?" Himawari asked brightly.

"Actually, there are a lot of rules, like a razor... but today we'll just have a simple ceremony!" Yuuko answered, then smiled in that mysterious way of hers, her gaze flowing from Himawari, to Watanuki, to Kagome, and lastly to Doumeki. "The actors are all here."

"Eh?" Watanuki asked, conveying the confusion they all felt at Yuuko's last words.

"Then... let's begin!" Yuuko said, blowing out the central candle. "Himawari-chan, why don't you start?"

"Alright!" The other girl answered brightly, before thinking for a moment, and finally beginning. "A friend of mine stayed at this motel, once. Before becoming a motel, that place was said to have once been a family residence. It gives off the feeling of old-day mansions, and it was a favorite among frequent travelers because of this. However, no matter how one counted, there was always one room less on the third floor. From the space occupied, there should have been six rooms. The structure of rooms on the third floor is no different from the second floor, and there are clearly six rooms on the second floor, while there's only five on the third. So, my friend and a couple of her friends who were staying together started to ponder... next to their room, could there be another room?" Kagome resisted the urge to shiver. She had a bad feeling that she knew where this was headed. Doumeki glanced at her, his expression blank, and Kagome wondered if he had seen where this was going as well. "Their room obviously was the innermost one, but from the outside, the wall extended on. Then, one night, from the wall of their own room, or to their guesses, the wall which may have contained another room on the other side, came a sound. 'Creak, crack...' A sound like things being scratched." Kagome glanced at Watanuki, who had gone white, and looked rather like he was going to be sick, then glanced at Yuuko, who seemed pensive. "At first, my friend thought that she was being paranoid, but when she told her roommates about the sound the next day, she learned that they all heard it! That sound of scratching... And so throughout the time they stayed, the sound lasted every night,, 'til they couldn't stand it anymore, and they complained to the hotel manager, and the staff behind the counter turned pale, and muttered 'Always... if one stays in that room, they will always hear in the night a sound that goes "creak crack".'"

"Ah!" Watanuki said suddenly. Kagome was fairly certain she heard a touch of hysteria in his voice. It seemed that Watanuki-senpai _really _didn't like ghost stories. "Just like all others..." Kagome had to hide a smile as Himawari continued.

"Next to the room they stayed in, there really seemed to be another room! However, when it was bought from it's previous owner, the end corridor was already sealed with space enough for a room on it's hidden side. Apparently, my friend's complaint was the last in a long line. The business was being affected significantly. The motel manager decided to knock down the wall at the end of the corridor, to see what was behind the wall. They soon found workers, and as my friend and the rest of her group wanted to see what would appear behind the wall, they stayed one more night."

"I should have gone home by now!" Watanuki said suddenly, hysteria _definitely_ evident in his voice.

"The story wouldn't be scary that way." Doumeki agreed dryly. Kagome hid a smile at Doumeki's baiting.

"SHUT UP!" Watanuki snarled. Doumeki turned and shrugged at Kagome, his expression carefully blank, and she resisted the urge to laugh at their antics.

"The next day," Kagome heard something that sounded rather like a clack from the door into the next room. She stiffened slightly. She shouldn't be able to hear anything from outside the room. The kekkai should see to that. She glanced at Yuuko, and noted that she was also looking at the door. Kagome didn't like this. "The workers knocked down the walls by the end of the corridor, and there was an extension beyond. That is, next to the room in which my friend stayed... there was another room! The room structure was similar to the others, however, there was no doorknob on the door to that room. The door was sealed shut, all the spaces filled so that it could not be opened. To see what was inside, they broke through the door, and in the room... all over the walls, there were words written in blood that said 'Father, let me out'. On every wall... That's all!" She concluded chirpily.

"Himawari-senpai, you're great at telling stories!" Kagome complimented. Himawari beamed at her.

"Really? You didn't think it was boring?"

"To a certain someone, it's effect was alarmingly more than sufficient." Doumeki said dryly, glancing at the white-faced Watanuki, who immediately regained his coloring at Doumeki's words.

"OI! What do you mean by that!" He yelled.

"You know what I mean." Doumeki answered calmly.

"I wasn't scared!" Watanuki yelled again, heading for rant mode.

"Alright, let's continue!" Yuuko said, breaking up the potential argument.

"I'll go." Doumeki offered. Kagome turned so that she could watch him as he told his story, wondering what it would be about. "I heard this from my grandfather." He said slowly, "Coming back from a funeral service, he met a woman, who was stopped at a crossroad. That woman didn't look very lively, and her shadow was faint. There was an air of eeriness about her. My grandfather saw her, and thought 'she looks like a spirit'... and she turned to him and asked 'How did you know?'" Kagome nodded meditatively, thinking that some of the more humanoid spirits that she'd seen had certainly fit the bill. She glanced at Watanuki to see what he thought, and resisted the urge to burst into gales of laughter. Watanuki, who potentially saw as many spirits as Kagome did on a regular basis, was shaking, with his hands clamped over his mouth, obviously terrified.

"Doumeki's grandfather, was the priest of the shrine?" Yuuko asked.

"Yes." Doumeki answered calmly.

"And he often saw spirits of the dead?"

"Most likely. He told me he did."

"If so, Doumeki should take after his ability." Yuuko concluded. Kagome nodded. That would explain the power she sensed around Doumeki.

"Ah?" Watanuki asked, confused. Suddenly, more clacking sounds came from the other side of the door. This time, no one missed them. Kagome's eyes locked onto the door, not liking what this meant at all. "Who? Your family?" Watanuki asked Doumeki, who shook his head.

"No. It's someone within the realm of the deceased. The only person there is dead."

"Huh?" Watanuki asked, confused.

"The remains are placed there, before the funeral. We do this at my shrine too, Watanuki-senpai." Kagome explained.

"There's someone in there with the corpses?" Doumeki and Kagome traded looks, both knowing that the deceased were to be left _alone_ for the day or so before the funeral.

"No." They chorused.

"There's only the dead." Doumeki affirmed.

"Maybe the windows are open..." Watanuki trailed off as Doumeki shook his head.

"There are no windows next door." The clicking and clacking noises raised in intensity and frequency. For the first time that evening, Kagome was genuinely scared. What kind of spirits were these, that they had the power to overcome a kekkai?

"I've just said, all the actors are here." Yuuko said eerily.

"We are the actors... and that includes the corpses?" Watanuki asked, sounding outraged. "Let's go Himawari! Telling ghost stories in this kind of place, there's no sense to it!"

"You can't go." Yuuko said calmly. "When the telling of stories are in process. One can't leave the kekkai when one wants!"

"Kekkai? It can't be..." Watanuki said, stunned and surprised.

"It's constructed from the four candles." Kagome explained. "I've seen something similar done before. This room is within a sphere of protection, but if you leave... there's no guarantee of safety."

"You're saying that...."

"Before one hundred stories are told, no one is to leave this room!" Yuuko stated firmly.

"What di-did you say?" Watanuki screamed. Doumeki covered his ears, and muttered

"So noisy!" Kagome giggled.

"Do we really have to tell one hundred stories, Yuuko-san?" Himawari asked, concerned.

"If we were doing it formally. But since this is a simplified version, four rounds will do!"

"Four rounds? Meaning that we each tell four stories?" Doumeki asked for clarification.

"Not quite. Every round, one person will sit out, and start the next one, so that we have four stories every round." Yuuko answered. "The number 'four' is considered to be related with the realm of the dead."

"That's the first time I've heard that!" Himawari commented, interested. Yuuko nodded.

"That's why four is normally used for ward numbers in hospitals."

"In the old days, crossroads were often referred to as the 'four-place'. In other words, people used to think that one could see into the world of the dead there." Kagome shivered slightly. They hadn't thought back in the old days– they had _known_.

"You really know a lot, Doumeki!" Yuuko complimented. Doumeki shrugged.

"I'm just quoting my grandfather." Kagome smiled.

"He was right, Doumeki-senpai."

"Oi, why are you four chatting among yourselves? I'm not transparent!" Watanuki yelled. "Telling stories with the corpse... I'm not staying anymore!"

"Ah, but you haven't seen any sprits yet, have you?" Yuuko stopped him effectively.

"Huh? The spirits.... why?"

"So," Yuuko said after a pause. "Who wants to go next? Watanuki?"

"Eh?"

"Himawari, you're alright?" Yuuko asked her sweetly.

"Um... since we've started, we might as well complete it!" Himawari said a bit awkwardly. Kagome fought the urge to heave a sigh of relief. Ceremonies that were cut off in the middle always meant nasty things for the one who started them. _Wise decision, Himawari-senpai_....

"Himawari-chan" Yuuko said, taking Himawari's chin between two of her fingers, and tilting it upwards, "Really is a good child!"

"Himawari-chan! You'll be eaten up!" Watanuki cried, causing Himawari and Yuuko to look over at him like he was demented, and Kagome cover her eyes with her hand and shake her head.

"Anyways, 'one hundred stories'. Let's get going." Yuuko prompted. "Watanuki, you're up." Watanuki hesitated for a moment, choosing his story, then began.

"This happened when I was in elementary school, when I slept in the sick bay. I was having a horrible headach, so I had laid down. Then someone spoke to me from the window. 'Hi, are you alright?' He seemed worried about me. I told him that it was just a headache, and he said 'that's good'. Then we chatted for a while. I was rather unfamiliar with him, but since it was an elementary school, I thought that even if I didn't know him, he was probably a student. I didn't give it much thought. 'Farewell!' He waved to me after bidding me good bye, and left. When I thought back on it, I realized that the infirmary was actually on the third floor. There was no balcony, or any other place to stand on. It was impossible for a human to stand where he stood!" He paused for a moment before blushing slightly. "Ahh... that's all?"

"Is that Watanuki's school's 'Seven Impossibilities?'" Himawari asked brightly. Catching the look of anguish on Watanuki's face, Kagome fought back her laughter that Watanuki had talked about a real and genuine conversation with a spirit.... and his precious Himawari didn't believe him. The irony was too brilliant. "That's unbelievable! I wonder what child that was?" Himawari continued.

"It's a spirit." Doumeki answered flatly. Watanuki turned to him, stunned, and Kagome inspected him curiously. She hadn't _thought_ he could see spirits from his power signature, but maybe she was wrong.

"Can you see spirits and things?" Watanuki demanded.

"No! Not a bit!" Doumeki answered firmly.

"Even though there are things one cannot see, one can still achieve it!" Yuuko interrupted mysteriously, although Kagome assumed she was referring to the power that Doumeki _did_ have, even if he didn't know it. "Finally, let me finish off the first round." Yuuko turned to watch the rest of the group, her back to the wall, "Let me ask you... That thing behind my back on the wall... what is it?" Everyone stared in wide eyed horror at the shadows behind Yuuko cast by spirits. Kagome slipped her hand into her sleeve for her pocketknife, wanting to be ready for anything. The noises from the other room intensified, now coming from all around.

"It's coming from the ceiling." Doumeki said quietly.

"Yeah." Yuuko said calmly.

"I-it sounds like someone's walking on it." Himawari said, sounding scared.

"The sounds are in four pendulum patterns." Kagome said to Yuuko, concerned.

"Yes." Yuuko agreed.

"Feels like four limbs are crawling in all directions..." Doumeki murmured. Kagome nodded, watching as Watanuki acted like he was in a psychotic rant without the yelling. Then, suddenly, the ground started shaking. Or rather, it seemed to start shaking. Kagome recognized the signs of a kekkai breaking when it wasn't supposed to be breaking.

"Earthquake?" Watanuki asked, unnerved. Yuuko shook her head.

"Look at the water basin." She told him. Watanuki did, then stared.

"It's swinging fiercely, but the water is not moving?" Without warning, one of the candles went out. Kagome's eyes widened with fear, and she rose to her feet. She really, _really_ hated not having her bow and quiver in situations where she was going to get attacked by a large number of dark youkai or spirits.

"As if," Yuuko said softly, "There's something wrong with the Kekkai...." Another shake sent Kagome toppling down into Doumeki's lap, and he caught her.

"Ahh..." She said, scrambling out of his lap, and blushing as he kept his hands on her shoulders.

"Are you alright, Kagome?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I've had a lot worse falls than that!" She assured him, noting that Watanuki seemed to be going into rant mode while looking at the two of them. Interesting... Kagome's eyes widened.

"Watanuki-senpai... behind you..." Himawari looked where she had indicated, and yelped in fear.

"Well? What's wrong?" He asked, before turning to look himself, and screaming "WHA?" A candle holder fell onto its side, making Kagome stare at it in horror. One of the candles had been moved. That meant....

"The kekkai is broken." Yuuko intoned. Immediately, a dozen hands reached out from behind the wall, and latched onto Watanuki. Kagome edged away from Doumeki and Himawari, knowing that it was only a matter of time before they came after her... or more accurately, the shikon no tama.

"WAH!"

"Watanuki!" Himawari cried, horrified.

"Are you from the archery club, Doumeki?" Yuuko asked calmly.

"Yes." Doumeki answered swiftly, assessing the situation.

"Go get the bow from the wall cage." Doumeki grabbed the bow. "Aim at the wall, and shoot!"

"But there are no arrows! And which wall? The one behind Watanuki... or the one behind Kagome?" Kagome glanced behind her, and sighed. There were shifting shadows that were quickly approaching the wall. She knew that they would break out at any second.

"Don't worry about the arrows. If you are the one, it shouldn't matter. And Kagome can take care of her own shadows."

"I'll be fine, Doumeki-senpai. I just have to wait for them to actually cross the wall." Kagome assured him. Doumeki nodded, lifted the bow above his head, took careful aim, drew the string, and shot. Kagome could see almost see an arrow of spiritual power fly through the air, and embed itself into the spirits holding Watanuki. At the same instant, she felt the cold touch of a spirit on her shoulder, reaching for the shikon no tama. She smiled coldly, adjusted her grip on her pocketknife, and stabbed it over her shoulder. There were unearthly screams from two parts of the room, as the spirits behind Watanuki melted into a rather disgusting gloopy substance, and the ones behind Kagome were purified into dust. Mokona's eyes opened wide, and he inhaled, drawing both the gloop and the dust into his mouth. Yuuko smiled as Mokona shut his mouth, a pleased expression on his face.

"Thank you for the entertainment." Watanuki and Himawari seemed stunned, and even Doumeki seemed a bit unnerved. Kagome sighed, assuming that the time for telling stories was over as Mokona drew a large number of rice balls from his mouth for everyone to share. A few minutes later, the group sat outside, eating the rice balls.

"So, Yuuko made these?" Himawari asked, eagerly. Kagome laughed.

"Actually, Watanuki-senpai and I made them." She corrected.

"Watanuki-kun, the shop you're working at is so cool!" Himawari gushed.

"What... Himawari, weren't you scared?" Watanuki asked, stunned.

"The situation was very scary a moment ago, but Mokona is really cute!" Kagome resisted the urge to roll her eyes at Himawari's words, and tuned out her next few sentences with her thoughts. Had she really been like that before she had fallen down the well? So.... carefree? Didn't Himawari have a _clue_ what would have happened if she and Doumeki hadn't been able to get rid of the spirits that crossed the broken barrier?

"A moment ago, Doumeki didn't have any arrows on his bow!" Himawari had successfully recaught Kagome's attention with that one phrase.

"I know!" Doumeki agreed, looking seriously confused.

"Then what was that flying thing I saw?" Watanuki asked.

"It was air." Yuuko answered. "Doumeki has the power to stop evil spirits from approaching... moreover, he can also exorcise them."

"But I didn't do anything special!" Kagome shrugged and answered.

"Whether you thought you were doing anything or not doesn't really matter, as long as you have the power. The first time I purified something, I didn't have a _clue_ what I was doing. I just shot an arrow."

"Is that what you did, Kagome-chan?" Himawari asked, curious.

"Yes." Yuuko answered. "Kagome-chan is a miko, gifted by the kami with the ability to purify youkai and spirits, among other things. That was what she did tonight when the spirits attempted to grab... her."

"It's easy for me to channel my power through a sharp object, like the pocketknife I stabbed into the spirits. Then... well, you saw what happens." Kagome explained.

"Really? Doumeki-kun and Kagome-chan are so cool!" Himawari explained, and Kagome choked back a bitter laugh. 'Cool' wasn't quite the word she would use to describe her mikonic gift.

"How about some drinks or tea?" Doumeki asked. A chorus of 'Sure!' and 'That's fine!' answered him. Kagome got up to follow him.

"I'm coming to help!" She told him, and he nodded. As they were leaving, Mokona called after them.

"Everything is better with beer!" Kagome laughed, and Doumeki's mouth twitched upwards at the black manjuu bun's words.

"So." He said quietly as he lead her to the kitchen, "It sounds like you already knew about what you could do, this purification stuff." Kagome nodded, her eyes going into a slightly dazed mode as she thought about the past.

"For two and a half years now." She agreed.

"And you weren't even startled by the spirits, or what you did." He stated flatly as he passed her a tray, and placed several cups on it. Kagome smiled wryly.

"I may not be a spirit magnet in and of myself, like Watanuki is, but I'm the protector of an object that is. That means I get to deal with spirits and dark youkai on an almost daily basis. Trust me, once you've seen some of the things I've seen, what happened tonight will seem like a cake walk to you too. To me, the scariest thing about tonight was the kekkai breaking. I've relied on kekkai just like that one dozens of times, and it scares me to think of them breaking."

"I see..." Doumeki said, obviously contemplating her words as he got a large bottle of beer, and gestured for her to head out to join the others.

"Ah! I smell beer!" Yuuko's voice called as they approached.

"It's Unicorn Beer brand." Doumeki informed her.

"YEAH!" Yuuko cheered.

"Mokona wants to drink too!" Mokona called, jumping towards the tray of cups Kagome carried. Watanuki looked grim. Kagome passed Himawari the tray.

"Go join them. I'll get Watanuki-senpai to come with us." Himawari nodded with a smile, and joined the small group that was forming a little ways away. "Watanuki-senpai, come drink with us!" Kagome said brightly, offering him her hand. He smiled at her, and took her hand, allowing her to pull him up.

"Sure!" And together, they went to join the others.

— ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---- — ---

Sorry this took longer than usual to get up. I got side-tracked by the RPG I'm participating in... last night I finally got to start working in an active log! It's really fun!

Thanks so much to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, or alerted this story! It's great to know that people like it. What's really epically great is when you read the name of the person who's done one of the above, and you realize that it's the writer of one of your own favorited stories. This has happened already. It's quite cool!


	6. Chapter Five: Of Coiling and Angels

Let it be known that all characters, settings, events, and dialogue pertaining to _xxxHoLiC_ belong to CLAMP. All characters, settings, and events pertaining to _InuYasha: a Feudal Fairytale_ are property of Rumiko Takahashi. Read: I own nothing. I'm a Chinese and French major at university. I don't have the funding that would come along with owning either. Accept that, and move on with your life.

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There were days when Kagome really hated sports other than archery. Specifically, when she, her co-worker, her boss, and her co-worker's arch-rival/friend were invited to go to a picnic by said co-worker's crush, and the crush was late, leading to a game of baseball. Kagome _despised_ baseball in all of its forms. She wasn't sure if it was because she, for some strange reason, lacked the ability to catch the ball, or if it was because she always, _always_ hit foul balls. It was one of the two. Either way, she had politely refused to play, and offered to keep score instead. Even then, she had been taken by surprise when Yuuko managed to break some poor person's window. She winced in sympathy as Watanuki got sent off to be yelled at, secretly thrilled not to be the one sentenced to the gallows herself. Doumeki took a seat next to her on her bench as Watanuki attempted to argue his way out of going. Kagome sighed and shook her head.

"Hasn't he figured out that arguing with Yuuko-san just makes her more determined to send him because she finds it entertaining?" She asked Doumeki dryly. Doumeki snorted.

"Not likely. Sometimes, Watanuki has a _really_ thick head." Kagome giggled as Watanuki stormed off, muttering in a slightly subdued form of psychotic rant mode.

"Kagome-chan! Doumeki-kun! Let's set out the food!" Yuuko called cheerfully. With a glance at each other, and a shrug of their shoulders, the two teenagers set to work. Watanuki came back a short time later, still griping about the window. Kagome did her best to ignore him, choosing instead to engage in conversation with Doumeki about various and sundry things. Why Kagome was a year older than her classmates, for example. She did not go into detail, choosing to explain that she had been caught up in a certain 'supernatural issue' that had forced her to miss school a lot, resulting in her having to redo her last year of junior high. Doumeki had accepted her explanation without question, and had gone on to tell her about growing up with his grandfather, and the stories he had been told. Kagome listened, paying rapt attention, offering her own opinions based on her experiences. However, they were rather suddenly interrupted by Mokona, who had been sitting next to Kagome, rising into the air in a swirl of air and colors, followed by his jewel lighting up, and projecting a disk of light in front of the two. The face of a boy about their age appeared in the disk, with two other young men in the background, one blond, and one dark.

"Uh, hello?" The boy in the foreground asked hesitantly. Meanwhile, behind him, the other two continued talking.

"Wow, Mokona is really useful!" The blonde commented, impressed

"This is rather TOO easy!" The dark one practically yelled. Kagome was caught between laughing and freaking out. Watanuki glanced over at them, then called

"Ahh! Syaoran!" Yuuko got to her feet, and walked over lazily. She glanced at Kagome and Doumeki, who shrugged, and moved almost at once.

"What is that..." Doumeki asked Kagome as they found a new place to sit a little ways away. Kagome shook her head, still mildly in shock.

"I honestly have no idea. Watanuki-senpai? You seemed to know those people."

"Sure! They were some of Yuuko's guests just before you started working at the shop, Kagome. They came from different worlds, and now they're probably in another world. They're world hopping, looking for someone's memory fragments. The boy who is talking to Yuuko is Syaoran. It's his childhood friend, Sakura, who lost her memories. The blonde guy is Fai, and the dark one is Kurogane." Kagome's eyes narrowed.

"It's not just Sakura's memory fragments that are missing, is it?" She asked quietly. Watanuki shrugged helplessly.

"I _think_ Yuuko was talking about 'the feathers being this child's soul' or something." Kagome's eyes widened.

"Her soul was _fragmented and sent into other dimensions_? She must be in a _really_ bad state!" Kagome said, worried for a girl she didn't know, with a great deal of sympathy. She had been in a similar, albeit not exactly the same, position more than once. Watanuki nodded grimly.

"The only time I saw her, it was like she was already dead. She just lay limply in Syaoran's arms while he begged Yuuko to help her." Kagome smiled, with just the slightest trace of bitterness.

"He must really love her, to be able to go through so much for her."

"I agree." Doumeki added quietly, his eyes locked on Kagome's face, analyzing her expression.

"Fine." Yuuko's voice cut through their conversation, "I'll send 'that thing' that will break the seal on the city."

"Seal on the city?" Doumeki murmured to Kagome, who shrugged.

"Maybe she means some sort of barrier? Not a kekkai, exactly, but something similar?" She answered hesitantly.

"But you guys have to pay a price!" Yuuko informed her trans-dimensional customers.

"Of course." Kagome said dryly. Doumeki and Watanuki chuckled.

"Take this thing!" A voice from the other side of the light disk answered. Kagome was fairly certain that it was the blonde one who was speaking. "I haven't used it, even though it _is_ magical."

"Ok!" Yuuko said cheerily. "Give it to Mokona." Suddenly, Mokona opened its mouth, and out flew an enormous magical looking staff. The jaws of three teenagers dropped with surprise.

"By the kami..." Kagome whispered, awed.

"Mokona, take 'that thing' out." Yuuko ordered calmly, as though this was completely ordinary.

"I already ate a little..." Mokona mumbled.

"A little is enough." She reassured him. Mokona opened his mouth, and out popped a ball of raw spiritual energy, laced with faint traces of the powers of purification and exorcism. Kagome was familiar with both of the latter energy signatures. Her eyes narrowed slightly, then widened.

"Yuuko-san... are those the remains of the spirits from the night of 100 ghost stories?" She asked, awed. Yuuko smiled mysteriously.

"Very good, my dear. After all, monsters obviously have to fight with monsters, right?" She turned to Mokona, and handed him back the ball. "Send this thing over..." She commanded. Kagome watched as Mokon a opened his mouth, and inhaled the ball. A moment later, on the projection, the boy Watanuki had called Syaoran held out his hand, and caught it. Yuuko smiled. "Then... right. Kurogane... if you bully Mokona..." Her voice trailed off as she began a very, _very_ evil laugh. Kagome shuddered slightly, and Watanuki called out softly

"How scary!"

_For once, _Kagome thought wryly, _I agree with Watanuki-senpai!_

"WHAT!" The dark man bellowed. Kagome had to fight the urge to giggle at his reaction as the picture crackled, then went out entirely. Yuuko turned to face them, ecstatic.

"Did you see it?" Yuuko asked excitedly. Kagome smiled indulgently, automatically going into the mode she used when Shippou was getting just a _tad _bit too rowdy. She couldn't help it; Yuuko's face and tone of voice were _exactly_ the same.

"Yes, Yuuko, we saw them. And we saw Mokona transporting goods across worlds."

"Watanuki-kun! Doumeki-kun! Kagome-chan! Yuuko-san!" Himawari's voice, along with Himawari herself, approached them. Watanuki immediately went into Psychotic Joy Mode.

"Himawari! I'm here!" He called as Himawari joined them.

"I'm sorry, I was the one who invited everyone, and I was late."

"It's ok, don't worry! Come sit, would you like some rice balls?" Watanuki assured her rapidly. Kagome blinked.

"How can he say that much, that fast... all without our agreement?" She asked Doumeki, mildly impressed. The other boy shrugged.

"He's Watanuki, and she's Himawari. That's how." He answered flatly. Kagome bit back a laugh.

"The sad thing is... that actually explains a lot." She told him.

"Yep."

"Then, what was it that you wanted me to do?" Yuuko asked Himawari, effectively attracting Kagome and Doumeki's attention.

"Actually... it's a favor for one of my friends." She said quietly. Yuuko's eyebrows rose.

"Really? Go on."

"She lives near my house, and we're both in high school, but she misses so much school that it's something of a problem."

"Something of a problem?" Kagome asked, curious in spite of herself.

"From what she's told me, there's this new fad at her school to play this game called 'Angels'. I'm not sure if it's because of that, but a lot of weird things have been happening at her school since they started playing. I thought Yuuko-san might have an idea, so I thought I would ask her."

"Angels?" Watanuki asked, clearly confused. Kagome rolled her eyes.

"It's very much a girls' game." She said. "I haven't played it since my old friends left middle school. The way it works is that you write 50 sounds on a piece of paper, then you put either ten coins or a pencil in a certain arrangement. Then you chant your question while you rotate the pencil. When it makes a round trip, you should have the answer to your question."

"Sounds like Money's Immortality." Yuuko murmured. Kagome nodded.

"I only saw that one played once, but it looked like the same general idea."

"Why did they change the name?" Watanuki asked, still baffled. Yuuko laughed.

"Because 'Angel' sounds gentler, of course! Still you have to be careful, even if you change the name, you _don't_ change the dangers." Kagome shuddered.

"Isn't _that_ the truth." Kagome murmured. "Now that I know why that game always gave me the creeps." Doumeki looked at her, curiosity sparkling in his eyes. "It calls on spirits to answer questions about the future. I couldn't _see_ them back then, but I could _sense_ them, and they freaked me out." Doumeki nodded in understanding.

"So, there _are _dangers..." Himawari murmured. Kagome and Doumeki stared at her, clearly resisting the urge to say 'it involves spirits, of _course_ there are dangers!'.

"What do you want to do for your neighbor?" Yuuko asked Himawari, curious.

"If it's possible, I'd like to stop the problems."

"Alright, I'll trust you, Himawari... but this time, you have to go with these three."

"Does that include me?" Watanuki screamed. Kagome hid her eyes in her hand.

"Here we go again." She murmured to Doumeki, who easily stifled a laugh.

"Yes, Watanuki, of course that includes you!" Yuuko snapped. "Now, the three of you will need to go to the school as soon as possible..."

"I can't go today." Kagome spoke up hastily. "I told my mother I'd be home by eight. Speaking of which... it's seven now. I need to get going if I don't want her to get worried." Watanuki, Himawari, and Doumeki looked at her as though she was slightly obsessive.

"It's only seven, Kagome-chan..." Himawari said slowly. Kagome sighed.

"Yes, but I have almost an hour long subway ride to get home. I'm probably going to be late as it is."

"Ehh? You live an hour away, Kagome-chan?" Watanuki asked, slightly stunned. "Why do you go to school here, then?" Kagome shrugged.

"Partially because it is a really good school. Partially so that I could avoid some rumors that started about me back when I was in middle school. Partially for reasons relating to my abilities. It's not a problem. It just means that I have to make sure I keep track of the time." Yuuko nodded.

"That's a very good skill, Kagome. Now, I'll need the three of you to meet at this school at about seven tomorrow night..."

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The next evening was a Saturday, and as Yuuko had given Kagome the day off in exchange for helping with the Himawari issue, Kagome emerged from the subway station promptly at 6:30 pm, planning on getting lost at least once on her way to the school. A year in the Sengoku Jidai had done nothing to salvage the sense of direction, which she sadly lacked. As she hurried up the last steps, she was startled to see Doumeki lounging next to the stairwell leading down into the depths of Tokyo. She blinked.

"Doumeki-senpai? What are you doing here?"

"Waiting for you, obviously." He answered calmly. Her eyes narrowed.

"Why?" She asked, suspicious.

"Because it's polite. It's not like your station's out of my way. Besides, you seem like the type that would get lost easily." Kagome glared helplessly at him for the last statement for a moment, before starting to laugh.

"My sense of direction is _terrible._ I figured I was going to get lost at least once, if not twice, on my way there."

"Problem solved. Come on, let's get going, or Watanuki will get there before we do."

"Mm!" The walk was pleasant, neither feeling the need to fill the comfortable silence with unnecessary chatter. They reached the school as the last of the sunlight began to fade away. Kagome shivered.

"I _really_ don't like doing this sort of thing at night..." She murmured. Doumeki looked at her, seeming a bit surprised.

"Are you scared?" Kagome shook her head.

"No, I'm not scared, just... uncomfortable. Dark powers are stronger in darkness, and light ones are weaker. Something tells me this thing's going to be hard enough to beat without it being nighttime once we get started."

"I see..." It was at that moment that Watanuki arrived, and Kagome suddenly found herself trying very hard not to laugh. Someone (Kagome was putting her money on Yuuko) had clearly forced a rather embarrassed Watanuki to wear a set of headphones, whose earpieces looked like the ears of some sort of adorable white and pink plush toy. It was all she could do to keep from laughing. Doumeki turned around rapidly, and Kagome caught sight of his lips twitching into a grin.

"Let's go."

"WHY DON'T YOU SAY SOMETHING!" Watanuki shrieked after him. Kagome barely resisted the urge to snicker. Watanuki was setting himself up _brilliantly_ for Doumeki's particular brand of mockery.

"If it's because you like to wear them, then I have nothing to say." Doumeki answered calmly, approaching a portion of the gate that would be easy to climb.

"WHO WOULD LIKE TO WEAR THESE?" Kagome smiled evilly.

"But they look so _cute _on you, Watanuki-senpai! Why wouldn't you want to wear them?"

"Kagome-chaaaan..." Watanuki growled threateningly. Kagome found that she couldn't fight the urge anymore and burst into gales of laughter. Doumeki laughed quietly as well "Yuuko didn't leave me a choice!" Watanuki moaned.

"If you say so Watanuki-senpai. Come on, let's get in." Kagome went to inspect the fence, trying to figure out how best to get over the thing, preferably _without_ flashing the boys with a view of her underwear. She glowered at the fence, which was only a head shorter than she was when she stood on the concrete base, knowing that this was _not_ going to be a fun climb. She got on the base, and was studying, looking for good gripping points, when she felt someone pick her up at the waist, and, waiting for her to twist slightly, set her on the top bar of the fence.

"What do you think you're doing with Kagome-chan, Doumeki-baka!" Watanuki yelled.

"Helping her get over the fence. Or didn't you notice, she's a lot shorter than we are." Doumeki informed the incensed Watanuki without a blink. Kagome blushed faintly, _very_ thankful that the night covered up the fact.

"Thank you, Doumeki-senpai." She said quietly, and swung her legs over the bar, preparing to drop the base below, when she froze, eyes wide. "Kami-sama..." her words came out as a prayerful whisper, and her hand immediately went to the pocketknife she had tucked into her pocket.

"What is it?" Doumeki asked from beside her.

"Inside the school... there are some black things." Watanuki said from her other side.

"I... I think it's only _one _thing." Kagome shivered. "I don't like it."

"So it's a monster?" Doumeki inquired, sounding just a tiny bit irritated by the fact that he couldn't determine anything . Kagome shook her head.

"'Monster' isn't the right word... it's a spirit of some kind, I can tell you that much, and spirits aren't monsters. Not exactly..." Kagome explained.

"There's a really scary feeling." Watanuki murmured quietly "I don't know whether to say it's 'strong' or 'big'..."

"I think you'll find that the two usually work together quite well." Kagome told him dryly. "Well, let's get moving." She pushed herself off the bar, and landed gracefully. Doumeki landed without a hitch, and Watanuki wound up sprawled on the ground next to the concrete. Doumeki glanced at Kagome with a raised eyebrow.

"Has anyone ever suggested that you were related to a cat?" Kagome smirked.

"The thought _has_ occurred to a few people, yes." The trio entered the school cautiously, on the lookout for any sort of adult presence. Breaking into a school other than their own at night was _not_ something that any of them wanted to explain. Once they slipped inside via an unlocked window, they breathed a little easier. It was _much _less likely that they'd be caught at this point. Suddenly, Watanuki stiffened.

"Yes," he said to thin air, "There's a spirit. I can't see it right now, but it seems very strong." Doumeki and Kagome turned to look at him, wondering if their companion had finally lost it completely, before they realized that he must be speaking with Yuuko via the adorable looking headphones.

"Tell Yuuko that it was dark and had the school wrapped in what looked to me like snake coils." Kagome ordered Watanuki.

"I don't have to, she can hear you." He muttered. He paused for a moment, then went frantic, with tears dripping from his eyes. "As expected!" He moaned. Kagome and Doumeki glanced at each other.

"Should we just ignore his insane and random responses to Yuuko?" She asked dryly.

"Probably. It'll save us some trouble."

"True." At this, Kagome went to the door of the classroom, and opened it. She could see twisting remains of spirit trails spiraling down the hall. Her nostrils flared, and her nose wrinkled as she took in a slightly acrid scent.

"Uggh! So disgusting!" Kagome turned to look at Watanuki, who was doubled over, with a hand over his mouth and nose. Doumeki looked completely unaffected.

"Doumeki, do you smell anything?" She asked, urgently.

"Nothing in particular. Does it have anything to do with what he's doing?" He answered, curious. Kagome nodded.

"I can smell something bad too. Not to the extent he can, true, but usually I'm not affected by smells. My mikoki purifies the air around me. Either we're dealing with something too powerful for us to handle, or, more likely, it's mixing with several things to produce get the smell as close to me as it can. Come on, we need to find where it's coming from. Watanuki-senpai? Are you ok?" Watanuki nodded.

"It's just the smell." They continued onward, leaving the door to the classroom open so they could find it when they got back. It wasn't long before they came to a set of stairs, and with a communal shrug, started climbing. They were almost to the third floor, when Watanuki spoke to Yuuko again. "It's stronger the farther you go up!" He sounded like he was on the verge of retching, so Kagome took over.

"Yuuko-san, I can smell it too. Not so much as Watanuki-senpai, but a little bit. It's like... burning garbage, although I don't think Watanuki-senpai is getting the burning smell. My guess is that part's from it interacting with my mikoki, as it usually purifies the air around me. It was faint on the first floor, but now it's very distinct."

"Yuuko says to tell you that you're probably right, and that we should keep going until we find the source." Watanuki said through clenched teeth. Kagome nodded.

"That's what I thought." As they continued to climb, Kagome began to slow. It felt as if someone was slowly but surely tying weights to her arms and legs, making it harder to move. She glanced back at Watanuki, noticing that her fellow spiritualist was moving even more slowly than she was. She wondered idly whether that was because she was used to having a slave-driver of a hanyou on her tail, forcing her to move long past her endurance, or that her particular brand of ability was less affected by this spirit. Given his reaction to the smell, she would guess the latter, or perhaps a combination of the two. "Yuuko-san, it's getting harder for Watanuki and me to move, almost as if something is pulling us back. It seems to be harder for Watanuki than me, and... Doumeki-senpai, is it affecting you at all?"

"No. Having spiritual powers must be very hard work." He told her dryly, observing their struggles. Kagome laughed.

"You have them, too. My guess is that you're just automatically exorcizing any spirit that comes near you. Lucky."

"Shouldn't you be purifying anything that comes near _you_?" He retorted.

"Yuuko says that she would guess that Kagome is purifying about twice as much of the spirit's energy as I'm being dragged down by." Watanuki told them, a trace of awe in his voice. "She says that they aren't even actually latching on to _her_, just something that she's carrying." Kagome sighed.

"I thought so. Remind me again, _why_ did I get stuck with that thing?"

"She says because hitsuzen decided to give it to you." Kagome rolled her eyes.

"And people wonder why I say hitsuzen hates me." She muttered. Doumeki chuckled.

"WHAT?" Watanuki yelled. Kagome and Doumeki turned to stare at him.

"Umm... Watanuki-senpai, what I said wasn't _that_..."

"I think he was talking to Yuuko, Kagome." Doumeki pointed out. "What does she want you to say?" Watanuki's fist clenched, before he stuck out his tongue, made the sign for 'baka' at Doumeki, and turned to continue crawling up the stairs. "She wanted him to do _that?_" Kagome giggled.

"My bet is that she wanted him to say something like 'thank you for exorcizing enough of the spirits to enable me to walk." She said dryly. "Seems he just couldn't bring himself to do it." They found a small door marked "ROOF" on the next landing. Watanuki threw it open, and a blast of spiritual energy poured the door, knocking Watanuki off his feet, and Kagome grab onto Doumeki's arm to stay upright..

"What was _that_ for?" Doumeki asked. "Did she tell him to fall over?"

"DEFINITELY NOT!"

"Watanuki-senpai was reacting to a blast of spiritual energy, Doumeki-senpai. So was I. I just decided to make sure I didn't fall." Kagome told him with a grin. "Come on, let's go on out..." As the trio stepped onto the roof, Watanuki and Kagome whirled to look at the right.

"What's that crying sound?" Watanuki asked, following the sound.

"Crying?" Doumeki asked, confused. Kagome turned to stare at him, wide-eyed.

"You can't hear it, can you?"

"Hear what?"

"Watanuki and I can hear someone crying... if you can't, then that means..." Kagome's eyes widened. "Watanuki-senpai! Watanuki-senpai!" She darted off after Watanuki, with Doumeki in her wake, hoping she wasn't too late to keep the older boy from doing something stupid. She found him standing in front of three girls at a table, two of them with a hand clenched around a moving pen.

"Quickly, release your hands!" He called.

"No! Angel will punish us if we do!" The girl who wasn't holding the pen answered, sounding borderline hysterical. Kagome's eyes narrowed.

"Doumeki... who is Watanuki talking to?"

"No one. At least, no one that I can see."

"That's what I thought you'd say. Let's hope he figures out that the girls aren't human before he does something _really_ stupid, like try to make them let go."

"So, he's talking to spirits?"

"Yes. Or rather, three embodiments of the same spirit. I think it's the one controlling the Angel game."

"There are three girls playing Angel here." Watanuki said suddenly, Kagome guessed to Yuuko, "Then..."

"Who are you talking to? Is it Angel?" One of the embodiments asked, frantic. It was soon followed by the other two.

"Did he say "You guys go die! Don't think to go home!"

"Is that real!" The first embodiment, the one who wasn't actively playing, approached Watanuki, hands outstretched.

"Can you hear him with those? Quick, lend them to me, lend them to me!"

"Ah, I can't..." He clenched his hands over the headphones as the embodiment reached for them desperately. Suddenly the other two girls shrieked as their hands were once again pulled around wildly.

"My hands hurt!"

"We're all going to be cut into small pieces!"

"Just let go!" Watanuki yelled.

"We can't!"

"If we let go..."

"...There will be a punishment!" Watanuki grabbed the wrists of the two embodiments holding the pencil. Kagome blanched.

"Watanuki-senpai, don't–" She was too late.

"STOP!" Watanuki yelled, as he finally pried the embodiments' hands off the pencil.

"No!"

"No!"

"We'll be punished!" The embodiments shrieked.

"No, you won't, calm down." Watanuki told them soothingly, before turning and glaring at an ashen Kagome and glowering Doumeki. "Come help!"

"With what? You've been talking to yourself for the past five minutes. Kagome says there's a spirit there. Congratulations on scaring her with what you've done." Doumeki said coldly. Wide-eyed, Watanuki turned back to the embodiments, whose faces were twisted into insane smiles.

"We told you... by releasing our hands, there will be a punishment!" They backed Watanuki into the guardrail, and stretched out their hands to push him.

"Doumeki! They're going to push him off!" Kagome said, frantic.

"Not if I can help it." He muttered, and ran towards them. Kagome followed. They arrived just as Watanuki's body arched over the railing, and his feet left the ground. Doumeki seized the other boy's wrist, as Kagome watched the embodiments dissolve into one huge, gooey mass. Doumeki grunted. "He's deadweight. I think he fainted." He told Kagome, who could see that he was straining a bit to continue to hold onto his friend. She bit her lip.

"This isn't good..." she murmured.

"No. It's not." He agreed. "Watanuki! Watanuki!" He yelled down at his unconscious friend.

"Watanuki-senpai! Wake up!" Kagome called, her hands gripping the rail.

"Huh?" Watanuki mumbled, before suddenly yelling "WAAAAH!" as he fully came to.

"Quickly, come up!" Doumeki ordered.

"No need to say– AHH!" Kagome whirled at his second yell, and gasped to see the form of the spirit towering over them, holding the Angel sheet, and getting ready to swallow all three of them.

"What's behind me?" Doumeki demanded.

"It's the spirit from before." Kagome thought fast. She could set up a barrier, but it wouldn't be very strong, as no one had ever taught her anything beyond the very basics, and it would take most of her concentration. Still, it was the best option they had.

"Can you two manage without me?" She asked, her eyes locked on the spirit as it moved closer.

"Why?" Doumeki asked, suspicious.

"I can set up a barrier between the spirit and us, but it will take all my concentration to maintain it. Can you manage?" Doumeki nodded.

"Do it." Kagome turned back to the spirit, and let her eyes slide out of focus as she worked to raise a barrier, blocking out all sound and distractions to better concentrate on keeping her and her friends safe.

— - — - — - — - — - — - —

Doumeki kept his eyes on Kagome, half taking in Watanuki's one-sided conversation with Yuuko as he waited for him to climb up. Even with a vacant expression on her face, and her eyes completely out of focus, she looked as beautiful as always. He could just barely see a dim, flickering pink light, as if someone had lit a candle and separated it from him with several layers of thin cloth, forming a small sphere around the three of them. He wondered if this was her barrier. Even though he couldn't completely see it, he thought it was quite... pretty, in spite of its usefulness.

_Trust Kagome to produce something both useful _and_ pretty, that most of the world can't see._ He thought dryly. _If it wasn't for these powers that I apparently have, would _I _be just as blind to it?_

Suddenly, Watanuki went very still, and Doumeki had the presence of mind to haul him over, a much simpler task now that the other boy had stopped squirming.

"That... that thing..." Watanuki murmured, stunned.

"What happened?" Doumeki demanded.

"The... thing that was wrapped around the school... it _ate_ the other thing!" Watanuki stammered, then shook his head wildly, as if trying to clear a bad image from it. It sent the headphones flying to bounce off of Kagome's head, effectively snapping her out of her trance, before clattering to the ground a yard or so away.

"Huh? Is it... gone?" She asked, sounding as if she'd just woken up from a nap.

"Yes and no." Doumeki answered her, concerned in spite of himself. "How's your head?"

"Fine. I'm guessing Watanuki snapped me out of it? And what do you mean 'yes and no'?"

"Yep."

"And the big spirit from outside the school _ate_ the trash heap!" Watanuki stammered.. Kagome turned very, _very_ slowly around, stared at the place Watanuki had indicated the spirit to be in, then turned back to the boys with equal slowness.

"Watanuki. You kept me from keeping up my barrier _now?_" She demanded softly, as though trying to keep an angry beast from noticing them.

"I didn't do it on purpose!" Watanuki wailed. Kagome glanced over her shoulder, and blanched. Doumeki was rapidly coming to the conclusion that he _really_ wished he could see what had these two so freaked out. It _had _to be better than not having a clue. She turned back to Doumeki.

"There's a snake spirit. A very, very _big_ snake spirit. It was what Watanuki-senpai and I saw wrapped around the school earlier." Kagome explained quietly, obviously not wanting to attract its attention.

"What do we do?" Kagome bit her lip.

"I don't know..."

"Don't ask me!" Watanuki yelled. "Even if I wanted to ask Yuuko, I can't because the ears are over there!"

"My barrier's not strong enough to keep it out... and I don't think I have enough energy left to purify it." Kagome murmured.

"TRY!" Watanuki yelled. Kagome glared at him.

"No. I'm not going to be able purify him, and if I try it will only make things worse."

"How?" Kagome started ticking things off on her fingers.

"Let's see, first off if we're lucky, I'll fall unconscious, so I'll be total deadweight. Second, it'll probably make him furious. Third, it means I won't be able to continue purifying something I'm in charge of, which will attract even _more _dark spirits when it rapidly corrupts. That's the best case scenario, by the way."

"Oh." Watanuki said very quietly, before screaming "Ah! It's looking this way! DON'T COME HERE!" Doumeki glanced in the general direction Watanuki was shrieking in, and saw absolutely nothing.

— - — - — - — - — - — -

Kagome, on the other hand, saw a gargantuan black snake rearing over them, with glinting golden eyes. Her mind flashed back to another set of eyes that were a similar shade, before she firmly dragged her mind back to the present. She tried to shake her head to clear it, and felt a heavy weight. Her eyes widened.

"That's... not good..." Doumeki turned to face her.

"What's not good?"

"I can't move?" Watanuki interjected, clearly attempting to move, and failing.

"That." Kagome said.

"Ah." Doumeki was inadvertently looking directly where the snake's eyes were. Kagome caught sight of a very slight shudder running through him. "So, _this _is what 'the snake having his eye on the frogs' feels like. I guess I know now." He murmured.

"Heh. Good assessment of the situation." Kagome agreed.

"HOW CAN YOU TWO BE SO CALM!" Watanuki shrieked.

"Oh, _do_ be quiet Watanuki-senpai." Kagome scolded. "You're not helping the situation." The snake reared back, his mouth open wide.

"I'M GOING TO BE EATEN!" Kagome wanted to laugh at the irony. She had survived a year in the Sengoku Jidai... to be eaten by a giant snake spirit in the modern era. Such a pathetic end for the Miko of the Shikon no Tama. She never even had a chance to get rid of the thing.

"Oh being that has been here since ancient times!" A slightly tinny voice called. Four sets of eyes, three human and one snake spirit, locked on the discarded headphones. "Let me give myself as tribute to your great self!" The snake spirit shot forward and snatched up the headphones before slithering away.

"Looks like... we're saved. The binding's gone." Doumeki murmured.

"Phew! Too close..." Watanuki murmured.

"That _was_ rather unpleasant." Kagome agreed. The boys stared at her. Watanuki's even dropped a few inches.

"How are you... just bouncing back?" He asked in awe. Kagome shrugged.

"After the first three near death experiences or so they stop phasing you." She informed them.

"After the _first_ three?" Doumeki asked, his eyes narrowing. Kagome smiled sweetly.

"I kind of lost track after... twenty or so. Oh, don't look at me like that," She told the boys rolling her eyes. "It's a long story, and I'm not really in the mood to tell it right now. Let's get _going_, preferably _before _the snake comes back?"

"Good idea, Kagome-chan!" Watanuki agreed hastily, heading for the door.

"Still... it's a shame that those headphones are gone." Doumeki said musingly as he and Kagome followed. Kagome looked at him, tilting her head to the side.

"Why, Doumeki-senpai?" He grinned at her.

"Because it was interesting to see Watanuki look so dumb wearing them, of course!"

"DO YOU _WANT_ PEOPLE TO HIT YOU!" Watanuki screamed as Kagome burst into gales of laughter. Accompanied by a straight faced Doumeki, she left the rooftop, leaving behind the world of spirits for the night.

— - — — - — — - — — - — — - — — - — — - — — - — — - — — -

First of all, I am so, _so_ sorry this took so long to get out! I was occupied with cramming five million things into my last week in Slovakia, flying back to the US, spending all of...15 hours in my hometown, then starting a Chinese program that has pretty much taken over my life. Sorry, sorry! I hope it was worth the wait!

So, the game of Angel has been played out. Next up, the Monkey's Paw. Scary, scary...


	7. Chapter Six: Of Prices and Monkeys

Allow me to take this time to explain, yet again, that I don't own _xxxHoLiC_, or _InuYasha: A Feudal Fairytale_. I do not own any of the characters, settings, plot lines, etc. from therein. If I _did_, then there would be several differences, most notably that _InuYasha _would be about... two or three hundred chapters shorter. As it is, I am not the owner. It's a disappointing thing, I know, but it is so.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

"How much stuff did you have in that storage room?" Watanuki shrieked at Yuuko.

"Let's see... a lot?" The Dimensional Witch answered innocently. Watanuki answered with an entrance to Psychotic Rant Mode.

"GAAAAAH! You pile everything up so that it's really hard to lug it all out when you decide you want to clean!" He shrieked. "AAAH! I can't believe you have all this China piled on top of each other! You're supposed to wrap them in paper! And this kimono isn't wrapped in protective paper either! You don't even have any camphor in here, and EVERYTHING IS COVERED IN DUST!" He emphasized the last statement by going into a frenzied cleaning spree, and creating an enormous cloud of dust.

"Achoo! Watanuki-senpai, what are you _doing?_" His very irked co-worker demanded as she set a slim cylinder with a scrolling flower pattern on a small chest of drawers.

"He's whining again, Kagome-chan." Yuuko told her calmly. "He'll get over it eventually." Kagome giggled.

"I see, Yuuko-san. And just so you know, that cylinder was the last thing in the store room. I'm going to go inside to get some cleaning supplies to wash the interior. It's filthy! You really clean it more often." Kagome scolded gently.

"Perhaps you're right, Kagome-chan." Watanuki, however did _not_ agree.

"If she cleans it more often, then _we_ have to lug everything out here, Kagome-chan!" He yelled. "And what is THIS thing?" He seized what looked like a large, fluffy black ball. Kagome reached out.

"Ahh, Watanuki-senpai, that's..."

"IT'S MOKONA!" Mokona screeched, clearly unhappy with the manhandling. Kagome resisted the urge to laugh at the startled look on her co-worker's face. Yuuko made no such effort, and began to laugh hysterically at his misfortune. Kagome turned the other way to prevent herself from joining in, especially as Watanuki expressed bafflement and awe at one of the carpets, which apparently had a moving pattern.

"Do all the things in the store room have magical powers?" He asked, stunned.

"No." Kagome answered without hesitation. "Just most of them."

"'A storage room is a treasure mountain', ne?" Yuuko agreed.

"If that's the way it is, you should appreciate it more!" Watanuki scolded.

"I often straighten them out." His employer informed him, straight faced.

"THIS IS STRAIGHTENING THEM OUT?" Watanuki screamed. Kagome sighed, and began cleaning artifacts with a good deal more care than Watanuki had in the midst of his earlier rant. While she was mildly impressed that Watanuki could go into Psychotic Rant Mode twice in less than ten minutes, she _really_ didn't feel like dealing with it today. She was tired from a draconian archery club schedule, gratis upcoming tournament, and all the conflicting auras from the storehouse items were giving her a migraine. She was almost positive that was why the storeroom was such a frightful mess; Yuuko probably couldn't stand to be in there for more than fifteen consecutive minutes without wanting to kill herself. So much magical power... so much pain. Kagome thanked her lucky stars she didn't have school in the morning so that she could hide in her room with the lights off and something cold over her eyes all night without repercussions.

"The stuff here is here for the sole purpose of getting them to the people who should get them." Yuuko said quietly. Kagome tilted her head to the side.

"So, it's like a hostel, or something?" She asked. "You know, a rest place for magical items?" Yuuko nodded.

"Yes, Kagome-chan, it's exactly like that. You see, between things and people there is... 'luck', I suppose, is the best way to put it. It's rather like the luck in relationships between people."

"Suitability, you mean, Yuuko-san?" Kagome asked, eyes wide. Yuuko smiled.

"Yes, suitability. If there is good luck, or suitability, as you put it, people do well. Without it..." Yuuko's voice trailed off, and she appeared to be about to speak again, when another voice sliced through the air, jarring the atmosphere.

"Excuse me!" Kagome, and Watanuki whirled, and caught sight of a pretty young woman, standing just inside the gate. "I'm a student of archaeology and folklore. I'm fascinated by antiques, so I often go to antique shops, or even people's homes, to study them. I was just passing by when I caught sight of some of the artifacts in your yard. May I take a look?" Kagome was unsurprised at the young woman's interest. She could see at least three priceless relics from just a cursory glance. She glanced over at Yuuko, who seemed a bit... odd, even more so than usual.

"No problem. Hitsuzen has brought you here, after all." Her words seemed decidedly less happy and mysterious than when she had first introduced Kagome to her shop, and judging from the way Watanuki was looking at Yuuko, the same was true for him. "What was it that interested you?" She asked quietly. The student smiled, and reached for the cylinder that Kagome had brought out moments before. A ripple of unease flitted through her as the student's fingers closed around the sealed case.

"This one! I'm not entirely sure why, but this thing fascinates me! Do you know what it is?" Kagome resisted the urge to flinch. Something about that vial just seemed... _wrong_. Not in a demonic way, or even a _dark_ way, really, just... wrong. Much like the Shikon no Tama seemed wrong sometimes, especially when prepared to grant wishes. Whatever the reason, she really, sincerely hoped that Yuuko didn't let the student take the vial. It would bring nothing but trouble, she was certain. Yuuko was silent for a long moment, then asked

"What do you think that it is?"

"Well... it's a flowered cylinder vial of some kind... I can't get inside of it..." The student held the cylinder next to her ear, and shook it gently. "I think there's something in there..." She looked eagerly at Yuuko, "Can you give me this thing?" Yuuko's stare became flat, and almost cold.

"I don't think that it suits you." She told the young woman, her voice did not hold the slightest trace of inflection. Kagome shivered.

'_If there is good luck, or suitability, as you put it, people do well. Without it...' _Kagome had a very, _very _bad feeling about what would happen if the young woman took the cylinder. "Is this very expensive?" The student asked, sounding slightly desperate.

"No!" Yuuko snapped, then looked the student directly in the eye. "If you truly want this, you must agree to one thing." The student perked up visibly. "You must never open the cylinder." The student nodded eagerly.

"Yes, yes of course! Thank you so much!" The student skipped off. Yuuko sighed.

"And so the boulder is set at the top of the hill..." She murmured.

"What do you mean, Yuuko?" Watanuki asked, confused.

"I think, Watanuki-senpai..." Kagome said quietly from behind him, staring after the student, "We don't _want_ to know."

— - — - — - — - — - — - —

"Are you really that worried about it?" Doumeki asked Kagome, waiting for her to collect her archery gear from her locker. Kagome had just finished telling him the story of the cylinder and the student. She shut the door, and looked at him, her nerves evident on her face.

"Yes. Yuuko looked... well, not uneasy, because she never looks uneasy, but it was obvious that she was not happy about the student's interest in the vial. In my experience, when something like that happens, someone with power trying to prevent an occurrence, and it coming to pass anyway? Nothing but bad can come from it. And usually, it's not just bad for one person." She bit her lip. "I hope she doesn't open it..." Doumeki regarded her carefully for a moment, before nodding in agreement.

"Aya! It's you!" A cheery voice called from behind the two. They whirled, Doumeki stepping forward slightly to put Kagome behind him. "You're one of the part-timers from the shop, aren't you?" Kagome nodded slowly.

"Yes, that's me."

"So you're a student at this school? Such a coincidence! Starting tomorrow, I'll be taking my teaching trial here!" Kagome's eyes widened, and a chill went down her spine. In her experience, hitsuzen rarely caused coincidences like this unless it wanted to express its hatred towards a specific individual. Case in point, her stumbling across InuYasha and Kikyou all the time in the Sengoku Jidai.

"I see... That's, umm..." She stammered, trying to figure out something positive to say.

"It's so unbelievable that you're a student here!" The young woman continued to bubble, while Kagome remained silent. Doumeki was watching Kagome with growing concern. "Now that you're going to be my student, I suppose I should introduce myself. I'm Satou Chiwa, and you are?"

"Higurashi Kagome, and this is my senpai in the archery club, Doumeki Shizuka." Kagome answered softly.

"Pleased to meet you." Doumeki added, nodding. Satou bowed slightly.

"Please take care of me during my time at your school." She turned back to Kagome. "This kind of thing always happen to me. I think that it would be great if something happened, and then it does. I guess you could even call it an attractive force!" Kagome resisted the urge to take a step away from her. Hitsuzen did _so_ love its little games, and setting someone up for a brilliant fall was one of its very favorites. "Like this thing, it's magical, I just know it!" she said pulling the vial out of her bag. This time, Kagome _did_ take a step back. The cylinder still gave her a bad feeling. Her hand went to the strand of prayer beads around her neck, which held the Shikon no Tama, a nervous habit she had picked up in the Sengoku Jidai. She was certain that interactions with Satou Chiwa would finish the job youkai on the other side of the well had started, and completely shatter her nerves. "Ah, well, I have to go. It was nice seeing you again, Higurashi-san!" Doumeki watched Kagome for a long moment as Chiwa left.

"So. That's her." he said finally, breaking the silence.

"Yep."

"I think I can see why you're worried." He said slowly "She really wants to open that vial."

"That's why she said she didn't know what was in it _yet_." Kagome agreed. Doumeki nodded.

"Right. 'Yet' implies that she will eventually, which she wouldn't be able to do if she did what Yuuko told her to and didn't open it." Kagome nodded grimly.

"We'd better keep an eye on her. I'll pass the word onto Watanuki-senpai at work. Let's go to practice." The two walked off in silence, both starting to worry about what the determined young student would do.

At work that afternoon, Kagome brought up the subject of Satou Chiwa, and her presence at their school.

"A trial teacher, you say?"

"Yes ma'am. And, Yuuko-san, Doumeki-senpai and I both think that she really wants to open the cylinder. I'm worried." Yuuko snorted delicately as she picked up a morsel of food with her chopsticks.

"As well you should be. Watanuki, Kagome-chan, did either of you sense the cylinder?"

"Just a little. Enough to know that there was something... _wrong_ about it, but nothing more than that, and even then only if I concentrated really, _really _hard." Kagome answered quietly.

"No. Until she picked it up, I didn't even know it was there." Watanuki confirmed.

"It was sealed so tightly that not even you two noticed!" Yuuko said coldly.

"...Is that important?" Watanuki asked tentatively. Kagome turned to stare at him, incredulous.

"Watanuki-senpai, both you and I are extremely sensitive to the supernatural. If we didn't notice it, there should be no way that she did. That... doesn't bode well..." Kagome trailed off.

"Then I'll tell her to stop tomorrow, and make sure she doesn't open it!" He stated, determined.

"She won't listen, I think." Yuuko said slowly, "Perhaps, she will listen to no one, because she's too confident in herself." Kagome shivered, remembering the things Chiwa had said about her nearly unbroken string of good fortune. No, she did not think that Chiwa would listen to Watanuki any more than Yuuko did. The student was far too arrogant for that.

The next day, Kagome sat with Watanuki, Doumeki, and Himawari as they ate lunch. Conversation had somehow turned to the archery tournament in which she, Doumeki, and the rest of the archery club members would be participating the following weekend.

"It should be fairly interesting," Kagome commented, popping a piece of tempura into her mouth with her chopsticks. "I haven't gotten to see any of the archers from the other schools, and I heard that one of my friends from middle school had joined her school's team. It'll be nice to see her again, if it's true." Doumeki shrugged.

"The other schools have archers that are about as good as ours. No one who'll be a challenge for _you_, that's for sure." Kagome laughed, and Doumeki continued, looking directly at Watanuki, "Kagome and I'll need lunch." Kagome glanced at the perfectly oblivious Himawari, and started to giggle as Watanuki got a resigned look on his face, knowing that in a moment Doumeki was going to say something to deliberately goad him into a rant. "I want fried chicken." Sure enough, Doumeki's ply worked.

"OI, EVEN REQUESTS?" Watanuki screamed.

"You're having lunch here?" The voice of Satou Chiwa cut across the chaos of Watanuki's rant, startling everyone in the group. Kagome and Himawari got to their feet and bowed, murmuring a polite "Satou-sensei" as they did so. Kagome resumed her seat, but Himawari decided to stay on her feet.

"May I ask, what have you done with that cylinder?" Watanuki asked cautiously. Satou pulled it out of her bag, and shook it slightly.

"I haven't opened it yet. It doesn't seem to have a cover." She explained. Suddenly, the vial slipped out of her hand. Himawari dove to catch it, just barely managing to keep it from hitting the sidewalk. Kagome's eyes widened as the darkness in Himawari's aura seeped into the vial, warping the protections around it.

_Oh, no..._ she thought, as she heard Watanuki behind her voice a confused "Eh?"

"Here, Satou-sensei!" Himawari said cheerfully, offering the student teacher the vial.

"Thank you!" As Satou-san's hand closed around the vial, the ties securing the front portion of the vial untied themselves, and the vial slid open. Kagome nearly gagged. It was like the Shikon no Tama, only a hundred times worse.

"She opened it..." Watanuki exclaimed.

"Is it because... I caught it?" Himawari whispered. Kagome whipped her head around to stare at the other girl. _Now, why would she think that? _She wondered, _Does it have anything to do with the fact that her aura is tainted?_

— - — - — - — - — - —

"What _is_ that?" Doumeki asked, "It looks like a branch..."

"Maybe this is 'the Monkey's Paw'!" Satou said, excitement plain in her voice.

"Monkey's Paw?" Kagome asked, sounding confused. Doumeki's eyes narrowed.

"I read a story about that for English class once. It's supposed to grant wishes." Kagome's back went ramrod straight. Doumeki could not help but wish he knew why she reacted so violently to the concept.

"Exactly!" Satou agreed, "Maybe this is the real one, or maybe not, but I always find unique things! I bought it for such a cheap price, and so many people have tried to find this and failed! My luck is the best!"

Kagome shivered. Doumeki could not blame her in the slightest. What was that old Western saying his grandfather had been so fond of in relation to the supernatural? _Pride comes before a fall._ Yes, he could see that Satou Chiwa had clearly missed that particular lesson.

"We should test it to see if it's the real thing!" She said gleefully. Kagome opened her mouth, but, surprisingly, Watanuki beat her to it.

"But if it's a bad thing..."

"Don't worry!" Satou assured him, before pursing her lips in thought. "Let's see... Our next class is gym, and even the practice teacher has to run. So, my wish is... I wish that it will rain from now to the end of the day!" Doumeki did not miss how Kagome's hand flew to what he was pretty sure was a strand of prayer beads she wore around her neck at Satou's words. A loud crack resounded, and everyone looked at the Monkey's Paw, which now had one broken finger. Kagome shivered, and Doumeki forced down the urge to put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. After all, he was not sure that she would appreciate it. A second later, Kagome hastily gathered her things, and took refuge under an outcropping of the school. Unsure exactly _why_ he was doing so, Doumeki followed suit. He was glad he did, as the instant he was under the outcropping, it started pouring down rain, mercilessly soaking Watanuki, Himawari, and Satou. Kagome turned and grinned at him.

"I find that whenever someone makes a wish on something that has even the remotest possibility of granting one for rain, it's good to get under cover. It always works." She told him. Doumeki could hear the laughter in her voice. He relaxed slightly, and smirked back at her.

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" He asked dryly, and laughed along with her.

"So, she opened it?" Yuuko asked Watanuki and Kagome after they passed the story along at work.

"Yes, Yuuko-san. I think Himawari's aura might have had something to do with it, but she definitely opened it."

"And why did it actually start to rain like she wanted it to?" Watanuki shrieked.

"Of course it started raining, that was the actual Monkey's Paw." Yuuko told him in cool tones. But Satou's fate is not good... and I do not think she will admit it."

"What do you mean by 'not good'?" Watanuki asked hesitantly.

"That depends." Kagome said softly.

"On what?"

"On what she wishes for." She answered bluntly. "If she continues to wish for trivial things, like the rain today, then she should be fine. But if she starts to wish for deeper things..."

"Exactly. This is like a rock rolling down a hill. Once it starts to roll, it becomes very hard to stop." Kagome nodded in agreement.

"Satou-sensei is the rock. And judging from her behavior... I'd say the rock is only going to pick up speed as it goes down."

"Indeed."

The next day, Kagome came into school to the sounds of worried whispers all around her. Frowning slightly, she made her way to her shoe locker, and ran into Doumeki.

"Doumeki-senpai, what's going on? Did something happen?" She asked, worried, and more than a little confused.

"All the water from the pool is gone." He told her bluntly, looking her right in the eye.

"All the water from..." Kagome's eyes widened. "The rain. Of course. The rain water had to come from _somewhere_. So. That was the price of her wish. The pool water." Her lips twisted into a wry smile. "Well. Looks like no one will be going swimming anytime soon."

"Heh. Guess not." Doumeki agreed, then looked serious. "So, if you wish on the Monkey's Paw, something bad will happen." Kagome shivered slightly.

"Why would you think that, Doumeki-senpai? I mean, I know there has to be a price, but why would you say something _bad_..."

"Because you, Watanuki, and Yuuko were all very adamant that she not open the cylinder. Especially Yuuko, because I'm sure she knew what it was. If she was worried about it, then it can't be good. Besides," Doumeki sobered, "That definitely held true in the Jacobs story I read about it."

"What happened?" Kagome whispered, not exactly sure if she wanted to know.

"A mother used it to wish her son back to life." Doumeki told her flatly. Kagome blanched.

"What was the catch?" She asked softly.

"It brought him back to life alright... just back into a body that had been dead for ten days, _after_ he had died by being pulled through machinery." Kagome's hand flew to her mouth, suppressing the urge to vomit.

"Excuse me," She whispered, and ran for the girls' bathroom, where she promptly disgorged the contents of her stomach into one of the toilets.

_To be brought back to such a body... is it so different from being brought back to a body of clay and grave soil?_ She wondered. No, she decided. It was not. And _that_ thought left her heaving over the toilet again.

When she finally ventured out of the bathroom, class had already started. She sighed. She would have to go to the infirmary and tell them what had happened to get a pass. Hopefully, she still looked sick enough. Goodness knew she legs were shaking to the point that she was not entirely certain she would make it to the infirmary. A hand descended onto her shoulder, and she yelped.

"Relax, it's just me. Are you alright?" Kagome laughed in a mildly hysterical fashion.

"Oh, Doumeki-senpai... I, uh... No. I'm not alright. I'm heading to the infirmary." She paused, "Why aren't you in class, Doumeki-senpai?" Doumeki's eyes narrowed.

"You weren't _that _hard to follow, Kagome, and I wanted to know what was wrong." Kagome's face flushed slightly, or it would have if she had been capable of bringing color to its present palor.

"Oh. I was, well... throwing up. Talking about raising the dead... especially like that... generally makes me do that. I'm going to go lie down for a while. That, and getting something into my system, should help." Doumeki shrugged, and without another word, scooped her up into his arms, making Kagome yelp in surprise. "Do-Doumeki-senpai! Wh-what are you doing?"

"I'm carrying you to the infirmary. You're not going to make it there on your own. You look like you're about to collapse." He informed her bluntly. This time, a tinge of pink _did _manage to make its way to her face.

"Oh. Thank you."

Upon her arrival at the infirmary, Kagome was sentenced to spending the next two periods lying on the bed in the corner, staring up at the ceiling, and hoping that nothing bad happened.

Unfortunately, it wasn't meant to be. That afternoon at work, Watanuki told Yuuko and Kagome that Satou Chiwa had used the Monkey's Paw for a second time, in this case to get a mirror she wanted. Yuuko sobered.

"It can't be made, a wish without a price." She told Watanuki. "There are no such things."

"That means... the water from the rain... it was the pool water?" Watanuki asked, surprised. Kagome nodded.

"Yes, of course, Watanuki-senpai. Doumeki-senpai and I figured it out this morning. After all, you can't just _make_ water. It has to come from _somewhere_."

"Oh. What about the mirror?"

"The owner of that shop is a friend of mine." Yuuko told them, "He called to tell me that the mirror suddenly disappeared this morning."

"What will happen if she continues to make wishes like this?" Watanuki asked. Kagome and Yuuko exchanged looks before Yuuko answered him.

"She doesn't listen to your warnings, right? She ignored Doumeki and Kagome as well." Yuuko paused, "Watanuki, when will the spring rolls be ready?" she asked sweetly. Watanuki's eyes widened.

"Damn it!" He shot to his feet and ran for the kitchen. Kagome looked at Yuuko.

"A rock won't stop after it starts rolling downhill." She said quietly.

"No, it won't. It will keep going... and picking up speed, until the end of the road." Yuuko agreed. Kagome winced.

"That's what I was afraid of."

The next afternoon, Kagome's gym class was merged with that of Doumeki, Himawari, and Watanuki due to a distinct lack of pool water. She was quite happy to have the opportunity to join her friends. When she returned from one of her longer races barely winded, the other three stared at her in stunned amazement.

"What?" She demanded, slightly embarrassed.

"How do you _do_ that?" Watanuki asked, sounding stunned, astounded, and disbelieving.

"Do what?"

"I think Watanuki-kun is referring to the fact that you can run a mile faster than anyone else without getting winded, Kagome-chan." Himawari told her.

"Oh, that." Kagome paused for a moment, considering her answer. Obviously, she could not say that she had traveled with a hanyou who did not understand the concept of human limitations for a year and a half, so she went for the other option. "There are a lot of stairs at my shrine, and it's a long way to the subway station. I have to run when I'm running late, so I'm used to it."

"Oh, I see!" Himawari said cheerfully. Doumeki just looked at her, and raised an eyebrow. Kagome blushed, knowing that he knew that she was... well, she was not _lying_ exactly, just leaving out certain significant details. The group turned at the sound of delighted laughter. It was Satou Chiwa, laughing with a group of students.

"Why am I suddenly very, very worried?" Kagome murmured to Doumeki.

"Because you should be." He answered. Satou Chiwa caught sight of them, and hurried over.

"Oh, hey you guys! Guess what? My advisor said that my thesis was so good, that when he showed it to a publisher friend, the friend offered to publish it, just from the first draft! It's all because of the Monkey's Paw! I wished for some interesting source materials, and then there they were!" Her voice rose to a borderline squeal, making Kagome have to fight the urge to wince.

"Satou-sensei, I hate to ask this, but isn't that like... cheating?" She asked, hoping to get the student to think about her actions.

"What? Of course not! Anyways, what do you want me to do? It's not like there's someone I could talk to who could tell me some old story that isn't told very often. At least, not around here, and not that are willing to talk to students like me." Satou snapped.

"I am one of the keepers of the Higurashi shrine on the other side of town. It's a highly respected shrine, well known for keeping many of its stories secret. I know them all as well as my grandfather, the head priest. I am in training to become the head priestess of the shrine when he dies. I would be happy to share some of our stories with you." Kagome told her coolly. "All you would have to do is ask." Watanuki and Himawari's jaws dropped. Doumeki raised his eyebrows, then spoke as well.

"I also live on a shrine, the Akatsuki shrine, which isn't too far from here. I may not have all the training Kagome does, but I'm the current caretaker of the shrine, and I know all the stories my grandfather told me before he died last year. I would also be happy to share them." His voice was every bit as cool as Kagome's. Satou blinked, then laughed.

"Wow! So, the next time I need to write a paper, I'll know who to come to! Thanks!"

"Satou-sensei," Doumeki said quietly, "Kagome and I are trying to help. In every story, anyone who uses the Monkey's Paw–"

"Comes to a terrible end, I know, I know. But that won't happen to _me_." She told him with a confident laugh. "Well, I have to go. I'll see you later!" With that, she darted off, presumably to tell the next person about her good fortune. Kagome sighed.

"Well, at least we tried."

"Yeah."

"Ehh, Kagome-chan, are you really that important to your shrine?" Watanuki asked, surprised. Kagome turned to him, a slight smile on her face.

"Well, I don't know if _important_ is the right word. After all, if my little brother really wants to, he'll be the next head priest, not me. But since Souta's interest level in becoming a shinto priest is somewhere slightly below zero, and I _am _the first person in our family to have the gift in something like five generations, I probably will take over the shrine, and preserve the memories there." She closed her eyes for a moment, adding silently, _After all, most of them _are_ my own._ She opened her eyes as her teacher blew her whistle to signal the end of class, and all four of them set off for the changing rooms.

That next day, Kagome was running late. Souta had managed to splatter miso all over her uniform during breakfast, forcing her to go change. Kagome knew that she would miss her connecting train, but if she at least _tried_, maybe her teacher would be more merciful. She darted through the central station, desperate to reach her platform on time. She missed her train by seconds. With a sigh, she turned to go find a bench where she could sit, and maybe go over her math homework before the next train arrived. Immediately, someone slammed into her, and she was knocked to the ground.

"Ow!"

"Oh, Higurashi-san, is that you? So, you're late too?" It was Satou Chiwa. Kagome smiled hesitantly.

"Yes. My little brother spilled miso soup all over my uniform during breakfast, so I had to change."

"I overslept a bit. I thought for sure I would still be able to make the train, but... apparently not. And it's my last day, so I have my examination class! If I'm late, the other teachers will think I'm irresponsible, and grade me poorly!" She lifted her thumbnail to her mouth, and began to bite it as they walked towards the train rails. "If only there were some sort of accident, then I would have a Police Report to say why I was late! Then no one would consider it my fault!" The moment the words left Satou's mouth, Kagome began backing away very, very carefully. The Shikon no Tama responded just as well to the words 'if only' as it did to 'I wish', and she did _not _want to be near the train rails until she was good and certain that she would not become Satou's accident.

A moment later, Kagome heard a dull crack, and the woman who had taken her place next to Satou stepped over the boundary line, probably quite by accident, just as the train was passing. Blood spattered Satou's shoes, and Kagome's face. Satou turned to stare at Kagome with wide horror struck eyes.

"That didn't... that didn't just count as a _wish_, did it?" She asked, horrified. Kagome looked at her with what anyone who had not seen half the blood and gore she had in the Sengoku Jidai would have considered a remarkably composed expression, considering the fact that she had a dead woman's still warm blood on her face.

"'If only' is just another way of saying 'I wish'" She said flatly.

When they arrived at the school an hour later, Satou's tardiness was excused, and Kagome was permitted to take the day off if she so chose. She refused. If that woman died in her place, then she would at least make the poor woman's sacrifice worth while. At least her death had been quick, which was better than several Kagome had seen. She maintained her composure with relative ease.

Satou, on the other hand, was a different matter. She was obviously shaken by the scene that had played out in the subway, and was mortified that she had inadvertently killed someone. Kagome went to seek her out after lunch, hoping that maybe, just possibly, she would listen to her now. She knocked on the door of the small room Satou had been given as an office, and it opened without any effort on her part.

"I _never_ stole anything!" Satou was saying into her cell phone. After a brief pause, she continued "Ye-yes, I was in the library that day, and I met up with some friends from class, but I didn't steal research materials from _anyone_!" Kagome shivered. So, this was the price of the research for which Satou had asked the Monkey's Paw. Note theft would scar her reputation in the academic world forever. "Y-you're saying that the person who's notes were stolen was in the library then? And you want to know where I got mine? Uhh... A book! I found the stories in a book!" Another pause, then a horrified whisper "The student got those stories by interviewing her grandfather, and there was no way anyone else could have known them? No, wait, professor!" But even Kagome could hear the sound of the dial tone coming from the phone. Closing her eyes, Kagome backed out of the room, and shut the door behind her. She had a bad feeling she knew what was about to happen, and there was nothing she could do about it. The rolling stone was about to hit the bottom of the hill, and stop, permanently.

A few hours later, Kagome went back to Satou's office to retrieve the vial for Yuuko. She definitely did not want it getting into anyone else's hands. There was no sign of Satou Chiwa anywhere.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

So, the Monkey's Paw arc is completed. I'm not entirely sure I'm happy with it. There are a few too many time skips for my taste, but there wasn't a better way to handle things. I did take out a few for the sake of writing quality, though. The next chapter is either the fox oden stand, or the archery tournament leading up to the fox oden stand. I'm not sure if I'll decide to make them separate chapters or not. We'll see.

I'm really, _really_ sorry this took so long to get up! College eats up all of your time, so that you just want to go brain dead when you don't have to work. My apologies! Thanks for continuing to read, though! It's always great to find that someone else has favorited or story-alerted _The Price of Hitsuzen_!


	8. Chapter Seven: Of Arrows and Oden

*Sigh* Look, people. I spend time calculating the cheapest airline flights to central Europe so I can plan a return trip to Slovakia. In other words, _I'm _certainly not getting the royalties from the _XxxHoLiC _or _InuYasha _franchises. That generally means that I don't own their copyrights. Ergo, they do not belong to me. They belong to CLAMP and Rumiko Takahashi respectively. Accept this, and move on with your lives.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - —

Yamaguchi Yuka got off the school arranged transportation in front of Kawabata Gakuen, and looked around inquisitively at the campus of her archery team's rival school. As she followed her teammates to the archery field, part of her mind recalled vaguely that this was the school that her middle school friend Kagome had chosen to attend. Her outlook on the day brightened considerably. She had not had a chance to see Kagome in _months_, and maybe she could catch her once her classes ended. It was not as though she would have a great deal to do during the tournament. She was acknowledged as the best female archer in the Tokyo area; most of the other girls shivered at the thought of having to shoot next to her. This tournament would be like all of the ones last year: completely dull, and easily won. If it was not for the fact that she really _did_ love archery after her years of middle school, Yuka would have quit last year. Well, alright, so the fact that she had a crush on one of the male archers at this particular school _did_ provide a very large incentive for archery to remain interesting, but still...

Yuka's first shock of the day came when she met her first group of opponents. One was a first year student of Kawabata Gakuen with long raven hair and blue eyes. Yuka blinked.

"Ka-kagome-chan?" She asked, slightly stunned. Kagome grinned back at her.

"Oh, hey, Yuka-chan! It's been a while, hasn't it?"

"I didn't know you'd joined the archery club." Yuka said, feeling more than a little bit sorry for her friend. Clearly, she, like the other two girls they would be shooting against, had been offered up as a sacrificial lamb. Yuka felt rather bad about beating Kagome, and possibly dimming that smile of hers, but this _was_ a competition, and she was not going to go easy on her, just because Kagome was a friend. She did not have time to think about it anymore, as shooting order was decided. Yuka would be going first, and Kagome, as the most junior of the competitors, would be going last.

All four girls entered the dojo, and bowed to the adjudicators, before Yuka approached the shooting line, and the other three girls went to kneel in the back. As always, Yuka took careful aim, and shot her first arrow. She scowled slightly once it hit the target. It was, as her first shot of the day tended to be, slightly out of the bull's eye. She took a deep breath, took her second arrow, and shot again. This one hit the center, and she smiled in approval as she went to kneel in the back, waiting for her second turn. The second and third archers of their group were, as expected, terrible. Then it was Kagome's turn. Yuka watched as her friend calmly approached the target, providing a stark contrast to the nerves of the previous two archers, drew her bow, swiftly aimed, and shot. Yuka had been prepared to see the arrow miss the target completely after such a hasty aim. Instead, her eyes widened as the arrow imbedded itself in the center of the target with a loud thunk. Yuka felt her jaw drop slightly, and before she could correct her facial expression, Kagome had another arrow knocked, and aimed. Yuka felt her jaw drop even further as this arrow also hit the target's center, clustering next to the first. Kagome visage was still calm and impassive as she returned to her place in the line of girls. Yuka got to her feet, resisting the urge to shake her head to clear it. She did blink rapidly several times, trying to convince herself that it was just a fluke, beginner's luck. There was no way that Kagome, dear, sweet, _sick_ Kagome, could be a better archer than she was. It just wasn't feasible. Her next two arrows hit the center, and she returned to her place to wait for Kagome's turn. The other two competitors were out of the running at this point, but if both of Kagome's arrows hit in the bull's eye, then Yuka would be knocked out of the competition for the first time since she started high school. Yuka felt an uncomfortable nervous feeling as Kagome shot her first arrow with the same speed as she had the last two. It hit the center. Yuka felt her eyes widen slightly as Kagome drew her bow back, and released. If Kagome had followed this technique the last three shots, and hit the center, unless there was a fluke, this arrow probably would strike the center as well. Yuka's guess proved to be correct as Kagome's fourth arrow struck the center, nearly hitting her previous arrow. Yuka went into a daze, listening as the adjudicators pronounced Kagome the winner of the group, allowing her to continue on to the next group, and thanking the Yuka and the other two girls for their participation in the tournament. She was still in a daze as the girls left the dojo. She finally managed to regain her composure when she realized that Kagome was twisting her bow awkwardly, and biting her lip. Yuka forced a smile.

"Congratulations," She said quietly. She meant it. This was great for Kagome, even if she did not appreciate being knocked out so early. "I didn't even know you could do archery." Kagome smiled apologetically.

"Thank you. I learned while I was in the hospital. Good distraction, and all that. But you did really well, too! I wish we had been in separate groups, though..." She added wistfully. Yuka had to smile at that. That was Kagome, too nice for her own good.

"Naah, then you would have just beaten me in the finals. Either way, you would have won, so it's not as big of a deal." This was true, Yuka had to admit to herself. Kagome's shooting was significantly better than her own, meaning that there was no real way to avoid this outcome. Kagome blushed slightly.

"Thanks." She mumbled quietly. This really did make Yuka grin. Kagome was still the same as ever. Suddenly, an idea occurred to her.

"Still can't take compliments, huh? Come on. You can come sit with my friends and I since you probably haven't made any friends at your new school yet." Kagome bit her lip and looked away.

"Actually..." She began but was interrupted.

"Oi! Kagome!" Both girls turned, Yuka's eyes widening as she caught sight of the speaker, Doumeki Shizuka, the boy on whom she had held a mild crush for the past year. She immediately took note of the way Kagome smiled back at him. They obviously knew each other very well.

"Yes, Doumeki-senpai?" Yuka watched as her friend answered, her head tilting to the side inquisitively. Yuka felt a sinking sensation in the pit of her stomach. She had a bad feeling that this would turn into the Hojo fiasco all over again, with Yuka being interested in Hojo, Hojo being interested in Kagome, and Kagome being interested in someone else. At least this time she was only mildly interested in the boy. Besides, if she was lucky, she could report back to Hojo, and he would finally, _finally_ ditch his interest of Kagome in favor of her.

"Come on, we're waiting for you. Watanuki brought bento." The boy told her calmly. Kagome's eyebrows rose.

"Really? He _voluntarily_ brought _you_ a bento? I'm in shock." She said sarcastically. Yuka watched in shock as the usually expressionless Doumeki offered Kagome a quick smirk.

"Yeah, you and me both. Come on. You haven't missed much. He hasn't gone crazy yet." Kagome laughed.

"I'll be there. Just a second." She turned back to Yuka, "I'm sorry, some of Doumeki's and my friends came to watch us, so we're eating with them. If you have a bento, you can come join us, if you'd like." Yuka nodded wordlessly, in shock, trying to process that not only did Kagome have friends, but she was comfortable enough with at least one of them to joke with him. This did not happen often. While Kagome had been openly nice and friendly to everyone in elementary and middle school, she had made close friends very slowly, not showing her sense of humor until she was very well acquainted with them. For Yuka, that had been the start of their second year together in elementary school. For Doumeki, that was at most four months after meeting him. Kagome smiled, waved and joined Doumeki, who was waiting for her. In a daze, Yuka went and collected her bento box, and walked over to where she saw Kagome sitting with Doumeki, another boy, and a girl. She paused for a moment, watching them.

The four clearly acted as a cohesive group, each member knowing their specific place. The boys sat on the outside of the group, Doumeki next to Kagome, and the other boy next to the other girl. The other boy seemed to be a source of entertainment, as the girl giggled at his wild actions, Kagome looked on with fond exasperation, and Yuka was fairly certain Doumeki was adding fuel to the fire. It looked like the group got together often, and replayed variations on this scene frequently. Finally, Kagome looked up, and smiled at Yuka.

"Oh! Yuka-chan! Come sit down!" Yuka approached hesitantly, unsure as to where exactly she should sit, until the other girl shifted so that she was farther away, and smiled.

"Here, you can sit next to Kagome-chan. I'm Kunogi Himawari! What's your name?"

"Yamaguchi Yuka." Yuka answered with a slightly tense smile. She did not feel as though she belonged there, sitting in the middle of that happy group of friends.

"Yuka-chan, you already know Doumeki-senpai, but I don't think you know Watanuki-senpai, do you?" Kagome asked. Yuka shook her head.

"No..."

"Then this is Watanuki Kimihiro-senpai, who works with me at my part-time job." Kagome informed her, indicating the other boy, who stood and bowed.

"It's nice to meet you, Yamaguchi-san."

"It's nice to meet you too, Watanuki-san." Yuka replied politely. Watanuki took his seat, and turned to Kagome.

"Speaking of work, Kagome-chan, are you going to the shop after the tournament is over?" Kagome nodded.

"Yes, Yuuko-san wanted me to stop by at least. I don't think she's going to keep me very long. What about you?" Yuka watched stunned as Watanuki's previously cheerful countenance turned into a dark scowl.

"The witch is making me show up too! Why, WHY I ASK YOU!" He yelled suddenly, making Yuka flinch away, more than a little scared. She glanced at Kagome, who seemed to find this completely normal.

"Probably because she can't cook, whereas you in particular can." She answered calmly. "Watanuki-senpai, could you calm down a little? Your foray into psychotic rant mode is scaring Yuka-chan."

"Heh. You think Watanuki is _capable _of snapping out of it?" Doumeki asked, his tone flat. Kagome suddenly became very interested in a sushi roll as Watanuki started to yell at Doumeki. Himawari giggled cutely at the sight, while Yuka glanced between the two of them in stunned horror. Seeing her friends fear and confusion, Kagome explained.

"It's their... unique way of expressing friendship. Doumeki-senpai riles up Watanuki-senpai, and Watanuki-senpai reacts. It's weird, I know, but you get used to it." Yuka blinked, her face resembling that of a trauma victim.

"They do this on a regular basis?" She asked, incredulity and fear creeping into her voice. Kagome and Himawari looked at each other, and shrugged.

"Pretty much, yeah. I've yet to see a time when they don't. Although..." Kagome paused for a moment, considering, "Watanuki-senpai doesn't always react _quite _so strongly. Just usually."

Yuka tried not to think about this as she finished her bento as quickly as she possibly could. Watching the quartet of friends was too... depressing. It was like watching a play without having seen the first act, she decided. She could barely catch some of the humor, but so much of it depended on shared history that Yuka could not follow it. Furthermore, she could tell that Watanuki, Himawari, and Doumeki were trying to include her for Kagome's sake, but they did not really know what to do with her. Yuka did not blame them. The situation was beyond weird, and uncomfortable. As soon as she finished, she made her excuses, and got up to leave.

"Oh, I'll walk you back to your friends!" Kagome offered. Yuka nodded, looking forward to some time with Kagome _without_ her friends. Once they were a ways away, Kagome turned to her. "I'm sorry. I didn't think about the fact that you wouldn't know anybody but me. That must have been so awkward for you." Yuka smiled reassuringly. _This_ Kagome she knew and understood.

"Don't worry, it's ok." She decided to go on to the usual campaign. "You know... Hojo-kun said to tell you hello if I saw you!" Kagome's smile turned immediately and noticeably forced.

"Did he? That's..." She sighed, and looked Yuka right in the eye, "Kind of annoying. Please, stop trying to pair me up with Hojo-kun. I'm not interested in him. I was never interested in him. And while I know you girls want me to be happy, forcing Hojo-kun on me isn't the way to do it."

"B-but, Hojo-kun _really_ likes you!" Yuka protested.

"I know, and I'm sorry, but I'm just not interested." Kagome said firmly. "Look, there are your friends. I'll see you later." With that, Kagome turned, and returned to her friends.

Yuka did not see her for the remainder of the tournament, except for when she took the prize for first place in the female division. She felt a little sad theat they had parted on such negative terms, and decided that the next time they had an archery tournament together, she would apologize.

After the archery tournament, Kagome and Watanuki were pelting down the streets to Yuuko's shop. The tournament had run over, and they were late. Very late.

"The two of you just _had _to stay in until the championship round!" Watanuki muttered at Kagome, who glared in response.

"No one said you had to stay the whole time." She snapped. Watanuki ignored her in favor of his internal dialogue.

"I gotta figure out what to make... it's cold, so something hot would be best, but that would take too long!" Kagome started to roll her eyes, then stopped suddenly, sniffing the air. She put out an arm to stop Watanuki as well.

"Do you smell that?" She asked. Watanuki paused to sniff the air, then went into joy mode.

"Waaah, it smells delicious! Where is it coming from?" Kagome smelled for a long moment before pointing to her left.

"That way, I think." The two teenagers followed the scent to a small, slightly old fashioned food vendor's stand, which was clearly the source of the smell.

"Maybe they give free samples!" Watanuki cheered. Kagome laughed.

"Hey, if it's as good as it smells, you could take some of it to Yuuko for dinner." She advised, and Watanuki perked up at the thought.

"That's a good idea, Kagome-chan! Let's go see!" She laughed, and turned back to the food stand... and froze. Watanuki glanced over at her to see her staring straight at the stand, the fingers wrapped around the strap of her bag clenched so tightly her knuckles were white. The expression on her face was one he had never seen before, and he sincerely hoped that he would never have to see again, on _anyone's_ face. It was like she had seen something that she once had, and wanted it again _so badly_, but she knew she would never be able to. Watanuki turned to see what she was staring at, and saw a fox kit, carrying a few bowls, and dressed in traditional clothing with an apron. At that instant, the fox kit looked over at them... and shrieked in perfect unison with Watanuki, sending his bowls flying. Kagome proceeded to shoot a dirty look at Watanuki before walking towards the fox, and bending down to retrieve the bowls. Slowly, she offered them to the kit with a gentle smile.

"I think these belong to you, ne? It's alright, we won't hurt you. Don't worry." Watanuki watched as the kit seemed to calm at her soothing words and tone, and hesitantly reached out to take the bowls, before stammering out a very quiet noise that Watanuki could not quite make out. Kagome's smile widened.

"Think nothing of it. You remind me of someone I once knew, a long time ago." A distant and strangely wistful look crossed her face, and she closed her eyes. "A very long time ago..." She murmured again, before shaking her head and resuming a smile. "Besides, it's been a long time since I've seen a kitsune youkai, and they're always fun to meet." The kit giggled slightly, and a curtain above their head rustled, before opening to reveal a full-grown kitsune with a set of small glasses perched on his nose.

"Welcome to the shop! Oh, humans! Two of them!" He said, sounding startled, "We don't get those very often." At this Watanuki freaked out again.

"Ka-Kagome-chan, i-it TALKED!" Kagome rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"Of _course_ it talked, Watnuki-senpai, it's a _kitsune youkai_, not a normal fox." She scolded him. "You can sense the supernatural, you _ought_ to be able to tell." She rested a soothing hand on the top of the kit's head, who had decided to cower behind her as a means of getting away from Watanuki. The older kitsune smiled at the scene, before beckoning to the two of them.

"It's cold outside. Come on inside." Kagome nodded before entering the shop with the kit in tow. Just as she was about to close the curtain, she turned and looked back at Watanuki expectantly, as if to say 'Well? Are you coming?'. With a shake of his head, Watanuki followed her inside.

When Kagome had seen the kistune youkai kit, all she could think about was her _own_ kitsune kit, and the sorrow hit her like a ton of bricks.

_Oh Shippou, my baby... how did you manage after I was gone? I'm sorry, I'm so sorry... I didn't want to leave you, but... what choice did I have? I wanted to go back and take care of you... _When the kit had shrieked, she had responded instinctively, immediately going into mothering mode. She had followed the youkai without a qualm, entering the domain of a neat, brightly lit little shop, and took a seat, setting her bag next to her. Watanuki sat down next to her, looking awkward. The boy then turned to the older kitsune as he prepared some food, and asked hesitantly,

"Umm...Are those costumes?"

"No," the adult kitsune answered serenely, "This is our usual clothing. We've been running this nights-only stand for a long time now, but we can count the number of human customers on one hand." The kitsune studied the two of them for a long moment before adding "The two of you have pretty strong powers, don't you?" Watanuki looked shocked.

"You can tell?" He asked, sounding awed. Kagome shook her head.

"If we didn't, we probably wouldn't be able to see the shop, or them for that matter, Watanuki-senpai." She pointed out, "Otherwise, they'd have more human customers." The elder fox smiled at her.

"Exactly right, miss! If you don't mind, I'd like to thank you for not purifying us on sight. As you can see, we're not doing any harm, unless making oden constitutes harm nowadays. One never can tell, with humans." Kagome laughed.

"No, it still doesn't! Don't worry, I don't purify youkai unless I have to." She reassured him.

"An admirable way of looking at things. Miko have made a great deal of progress since the Shikon no Miko." Kagome jumped a little at the sound of her title.

"You know of her?" She asked softly. The adult kitsune looked at her as though she was crazy, before setting a bowl of each oden in front of her and Watanuki.

"Of course I know of her. We count her as the mother of our clan of kitsune. She raised our founder... oh. Of course. You wouldn't know that... Are you quite alright?" He asked, his concern evident. Kagome noticed that she was shaking like a leaf, and that tears were forming in her eyes.

"What? Oh, yes, I'm fine. It's just... I knew a kitsune youkai. A very long time ago. Your little one reminds me of him a bit." She explained, and the older one nodded sagely.

"Ahh, yes. I see. Do you know the story of the Shikon no Miko?" Kagome smiled.

"I live on the shrine that was built in honor of the Goshinboku. I know her story well... although we _do _tend to gloss over the details about how she adopted a kitsune youkai kit when we tell it to visitors." The fox chuckled.

"That _would_ make sense, I suppose. Shippou was a great clan leader. He never gave up hope of seeing her again. He did manage it once, just before he died." Kagome's eyes locked on the older youkai.

"He did?" The kitsune nodded sagely.

"It must have been, goodness, twelve years ago? He came back to the shop with the brightest smile on his face, said that he had seen his mother again for the first time in nearly five centuries, and that she had given him flowers, sat on his lap, and listened to the stories that she had told _him_ back in the day." Her eyes widened, and she frantically began digging through her memories, trying to remember...

"_Ohayo, ojii-sama. Would you like some flowers? Kagome picked them just for you, because you seem so lonely, Ojii-sama!"_

"_Thank you, little one. Aren't you a pretty little thing? You look just like my mother did, you know."_

"_Really, ojii-sama?" _

"_Oof, a little heavy, aren't you? But yes, child. Exactly like her. Would you like to hear a story she told me, little one, and maybe keep an old man company for a while?"_

"_Mmm!"_

"The old man... the one who came on my birthday..." She whispered softly. The fox, who had turned to speak with Watanuki, whipped his head back around to look at her with lightening speed, noting the look of shock and loss on her face, before reaching the appropriate conclusion. Kagome could see it in his eyes. Slowly, he turned back to Watanuki, as Kagome began to eat the oden in front of her.

"It's delicious!" She complimented the fox with a smile. "Oden has always been my favorite!" The fox looked at her, no surprise in his eyes.

"Father always said that it was his mother's favorite, and that he wanted to be able to give her some the next time he saw her..." He sighed, "I guess he never did manage that part. He died a few weeks after that last time... Well, he was old. It was his time." Kagome nodded slowly.

"Yes... I suppose it must have been." She resumed her eating more slowly, before noticing the kit looking at the two bags, which she and Watanuki had placed together on the bench. She smiled at him. "Is there something you wanted, little one?" The kit's tail puffed out in shock, before he ran behind the doorway. The older fox chuckled at his son's antics.

"I would guess that one or both of you have something interesting your bag. He likes interesting things, and always manages to sniff them out." Kagome laughed.

"Shippou always knew when I had pocky. Always." She murmured softly, before opening her bag, and looking through its contents. Tucked in a corner, she found a nearly completed set of prayer beads, which she removed, and placed on the table in front of her, before going through Watanuki's bag. Eventually, she found the shaft of one of Doumeki-senpai's arrows. She smiled slightly. That would do it. The shaft of an arrow used by an exorcist would _definitely _be counted as special by a youkai child. "I think this might be it." She told Watanuki softly. "It's either the arrow shaft, or my prayer beads. Or possibly both." She turned back to the kit, who had poked his head around the doorway, and smiled.

"It's fine, you know," She told him, "If you want the beads, let me finish them, and I'll give them to you, alright?" Judging from the stars that appeared in the kit's eyes, that was definitely fine with him. Watanuki picked up the arrow shaft, and held it out to the kit, smiling softly.

"It's just the end of a broken arrow, the one with the fletching." He told the kit, explaining, "Doumeki won his meet with this arrow, but since it broke, he threw it in my bag, the little creep."

_Ahhh, so _that's_ why nothing weird attacked us._ Kagome thought as she slid the second to last prayer bead on the strand, _Doumeki-senpai made sure Watanuki-senpai and I had some of his power as protection. That was sweet of him..._ The kit looked at the arrow in awe, clearly enthralled. Watanuki watched him, evidently confused.

"Is this what you wanted?" The kit rather adorably looked down, and rubbed his paws together, showing his embarrassment at being caught. Watanuki held out the arrow shaft. "It's yours. Take it."

"Ehhh?" the kit squeaked, shocked. Kagome smiled slightly as she tied off the beads, and bowed her head to pray over them, asking the kami to protect the wearer of these beads... especially if the wearer was the rightful owner, the little kitsune youkai who Kagome supposed was, in a rather roundabout fashion, her great-grandson. "Can I?" He breathed.

"Sure." Watanuki said, a grin on his face. Reverently, the kit took the arrow shaft out of Watanuki's hands, and rubbed the soft fletching against his cheek. "Thank you!"

"Thank you very much," the elder fox said, patting his kit on the head, "Here's what we'll do. Let's call that payment for two servings of oden."

"Ehhhh? That's not payment! And it's not even mine to begin with..." Watanuki protested.

"Oh, it's payment aplenty." The fox assured him, before handing him a set of wrapped oden bowls, clearly meant to be their equivalent of a to go box. "Oh, and take this. It's my gift to the people at your destination." He told Watanuki, who suddenly jumped.

"AH! You're right, I have to run! Come on, Kagome-chan!" Kagome, who had just finished her prayers rose from her seat slowly.

"Just a moment, Watanuki." She said softly, before kneeling down in front of the kit with a smile. Gently, she placed the prayer beads around his neck. "There. That's _my _gift to my great-grandson." She whispered softly, so only the kit, and perhaps his father, could hear her. "They should keep you safe, ne?" She ruffled the fur at the top of his head, before getting to her feet, and joining Watanuki. "I guess we really _should_ be going..." She said slowly. The older fox nodded, before bowing.

"My best regards to Yuuko-san." He told them, before the oden shop vanished around them, taking the two kitsune youkai with it.

"Ehhh?" Watanuki yelped, startled. "An illusion? But... the oden's still here..."

"I'm not sure. Yuuko will probably know. Let's ask her when we get there." Kagome said softly, and began to walk the rest of the way to the store. She had a lot to think about.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

Thus, the fox oden shop arc has been completed! Merry Christmas, Happy Hannuka, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Winter Solstice, or Happy We-Don't-Really-Celebrate-Anything-Right-Now-But-It's-Winter-And-Everyone-Else-Is-Getting-Stuff-So-We-Want-Stuff-Too!

I only have one final exam left, and then the semester will be OVER! If you're lucky, I'll get something up during break. We shall see.

I just couldn't resist the idea of Kagome a)having met Shippou again when she was a little girl, and b)being related to the fox oden foxes. Don't ask me why, I haven't got a clue. Blame the plot bunnies!


	9. Chapter Eight: Of Chocolate and Envy

For the ninth time, let's take a look at the way things stand:

Exhibit A: Me. Small, female college student, majoring in French and Liberal Arts. Does not have a great deal of funding to do things like go to Europe for a couple weeks with her high school Latin teacher, and said teacher's current Latin students.

Exhibit B: _XxxHoLiC_, written by CLAMP, very awesome manga and anime with an international fanbase, ergo generating epic amounts of money in royalties.

Exhibit C: _InuYasha: a Feudal Fairytale_, written by Yumiko Takahashi, manga and anime with huge epic major international fanbase, even if it doesn't have sufficient plot to support its bulk. Also generates massive amounts of money in royalties.

So, therefore, it stands to reason that if Exhibit A has highly limited funds, and Exhibits B and C generate a great deal of funding in royalties, Exhibit A is not receiving royalties from either Exhibit B or C. Ergo, Exhibit A does not own Exhibit B or C. As Exhibit A does not wish to have any problems with copyright infringement, she would just like to make that very clear. Again.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

The day before Valentine's Day, Kagome found herself asking Yuuko permission to use the kitchen at the shop in order to start work on the many chocolates that she was going to need the following day. Mentally, she began ticking off the people who she owed chocolate. Doumeki, Watanuki, and Himawari, of course, followed by Yuuko, and last but not least, the wonderful, miraculous doctor who had saved her education. Five people. Add to the list a couple spare boxes so that she would not get caught totally off guard by anyone who had made her chocolate and she did not have anything to give them. So, roughly eight boxes of chocolate. That, she knew well, was going to be a _lot_ of chocolate. She might just get the couple spares at a store, but still... Five boxes of decent sized chocolate would take a very long time to make, so she might as well get started earlier rather than later. Unfortunately, her query seemed to give Yuuko ideas, as she suddenly decided to force Watanuki to make fondant au chocolat. She winced in sympathy. She was not _nearly_ so ambitious with her cooking projects, knowing full well that the less solid the chocolate, the higher the difficulty levels in preparing. No, her plans involved making chocolate balls, letting them sit, and then neatly putting them into small jars, to which she could later add a ribbon, if she saw fit.

So, as Kagome was waiting for her chocolate to chill enough for her to make it into little balls, she watched Watanuki heat his chocolate to perfection, before finally smiling slightly as the chocolate dripped down from spoon with which he had been stirring the concoction and pronouncing

"It's done." Kagome smiled at him, and had opened her mouth to congratulate him, when the formerly quiet kitchen was invaded.

"It's done? The Valentine's Day chocolate is done!" Yuuko called with glee, her hands clasped together under her chin.

"Stop RIGHT THERE!" Shrieked Watanuki, jerking the bowl of molten chocolate up over his head, out of the reach of those who would steal tastes. "No stealing tastes! I just meant that _heating _the chocolate was done!" He brought the chocolate down so he could resume stirring it, hunching his entire frame over the bowl to defend it from Yuuko. "Honestly, why do I have to make you chocolate anyways?" He muttered darkly as he stirred. Kagome giggled.

"Hate to break it to you, Watanuki, but it's Valentine's Day tomorrow, and Yuuko doesn't cook. Therefore, you're stuck with the job." She informed him kindly.

"But it's the _girls_ who make chocolate on Valentine's! _I'm _not supposed to do anything until White Day!" He pointed out with a snarl. Kagome's eyebrows rose.

"I know. Why do you think I'm over here making _eight batches _of giri-choko? And you're Yuuko's cook. That's why you're making chocolate." She answered calmly.

"She didn't have _any _of the ingredients for this!" He snapped. "She's keeping me up late into the night to make _fondant au chocolat_, which is quite possibly the HARDEST TYPE OF CHOCOLATE TO MAKE!" Kagome rolled her eyes as Watanuki entered psychotic rant mode, and returned to her own project to Moro and Maru's cheerful chirps.

"Watanuki's mad! Watanuki's mad!"

_No kidding._ She thought dryly as she turned her attention back towards her chilling chocolate.

Watanuki finished his fondant just before Kagome put the last of her chocolate balls into a glass jar. Yuuko was delighted, and cooed

"It looks delicious!"

"It's my first time making it, so I can't guarantee the taste..." Watanuki muttered looking away. Kagome smiled in the background. She could tell Watanuki was proud of his accomplishment, but he was not about to mention that in front of Yuuko. Oh no. Definitely not.

"YES!" Yuuko shrieked, looking at the clock, "It is now February 14! Happy Valentine's Day!" And with that, she promptly dug into one of the fondants. Sighing fondly, Kagome placed one of her jars in front of her employer.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Yuuko-san. I'm giving this to you now, because I have tomor- I mean, this afternoon off." She explained quietly. Yuuko smiled at her young employee, and patted the girl on the head.

"Oh, yes, of course! Thank you very much Kagome-chan, that's so sweet of you!"

"Not at all! It was my pleasure. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go brave the subway, and head on home.

"No! One of the others is for you, Kagome-chan!" Yuuko scolded her, yanking the startled girl down next to her, and pushing a plate of fondant in front of her.

"Alright, alright! I'll eat, I'll eat!" And with that, she delicately began spooning small amounts of fondant into her mouth, before turning to smile at Watanuki. "She's right, Watanuki-senpai, this is delicious!" The boy in question turned slightly red, and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like 'arigato'. Kagome smiled, and pretended to ignore it, along with Yuuko's usual comments about alcohol and Watanuki's accompanying rant. Just as Kagome was getting ready to leave, Mokona swallowed up the remaining four fondants. She turned to look inquiringly at Yuuko, who smiled mischievously.

"That way, the _other_ Mokona can give our brave inter-dimensional travelers a taste of fondant au chocolat!" She explained. Kagome's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Wait a second- those were gifts to them from you?" She asked, suspicious. Yuuko nodded, beaming.

"Oh, to Syaoran and those other guys? That's pretty nice of you, Yuuko."

"Heh, no it's not, Watanuki-senpai." Kagome said dryly. "It's called 'broadening the net'." Watanuki looked completely baffled, and Kagome sighed at his utter inability to remember cultural norms.

"Watanuki-senpai, what are you going to be doing in about a month for any girl who gives you Valentine's Day chocolate later today?" She asked calmly.

"Huh?" Yuuko cackled maniacally.

"Ho ho ho ho ho! Very good, Kagome-chan! This way, we're all set for White Day! I expect great presents from all of them!"

"SO THAT WAS YOUR PLOT ALL ALONG!" Watanuki shrieked. At that point, Kagome decided that it was time for a quick exit. After all, she had a long ride back home.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - —

The next day was, as Kagome had expected, pure and utter Hell. Every girl in her class was giggling like a maniac, and pushing their friends towards various and sundry guys. Every boy looked entirely too optimistic every time a girl so much as glanced at them. Even the _teachers_ were acting weird, either condoning the insanity, or in one mildly disturbing case actively participating. By the time the tenth boy looked at her with a smile, asking if _she_ was planning on giving chocolate to anyone (specifically the boy doing the asking), Kagome was ready to scream. As soon as class was over, she darted out of the classroom, thanking her lucky stars that archery practice had been canceled that afternoon. Just as she turned the corner leading to the shoe lockers, she crashed into someone, and started to fall. A pair of strong arms locked around her waist, and set her gently back on her feet. Blushing slightly, Kagome looked up to see into whom she had just rammed.

"Running a little fast, aren't you?" Doumeki enquired dryly. Kagome rolled her eyes.

"If a bunch of girls kept asking _you_ for a White Day present in a sneaky manner, wouldn't you be?" She answered. Doumeki snorted.

"That bad?" Kagome rolled her eyes.

"That bad. Speaking of which..." She dug in her bag, before retrieving his jar of chocolate balls. "For you. Have some chocolate to add into the masses that you've been given already. I expect a good White Day present." Doumeki smirked.

"So, is it giri or honmei?" He asked evilly. Kagome resisted the urge to blush. Sure, she had _thought _about giving Doumeki honmei-choco, after all, she did have a crush on him. Sort of. Possibly. However, there was no way she was going to tell _him_ that. Not yet, at least. She liked having Doumeki as a friend, and she knew all too well how much strain unrequited love put on a friendship. She and InuYasha had provided a textbook case of the subject. Instead, she smirked back.

"_That _is for me to know, and you to guess. Good luck figuring it out." She looked around the corner, and stiffened. There was asker number three, quite possibly the most obsessive guy of the bunch. "Oh, no." She murmured, knowing that there was no escape. Doumeki followed her gaze, before turning back to her, eyebrows raised.

"One of your admirers?" He asked.

"Don't remind me. Now he's going to corner me for the _third time_!" She moaned. A slightly evil grin grew on Doumeki's face.

"Let me handle this." Kagome blinked, confused, then shrugged.

"Ok."

— - — - — - — - — - — -

Kagome's stalker type gave Doumeki a _wonderful_ opportunity, he realized. He could use him to subtly let other boys know that his friend was off limits. He was, of course, going to do so because Kagome did not seem interested in dating anyone. It was not as if he was _hoping_ that she had made him honmei-choko, or anything like that. No. Of course not... Maybe?

Kagome's classmate turned the corner, and immediately got stars in his eyes.

"Higurashi-cha-" the boy found himself abruptly cut off from his goal by a strong, distinctly masculine arm slamming into the wall next to his head. He looked up into the eyes of one glaring Doumeki, and gulped.

"Beat it, kouhai." Doumeki snarled. The boy nodded fervently and ran as Kagome looked on in awe.

"How did you _do_ that?" She breathed, evidently fascinated by the ease of which he had dealt with the annoyance. Doumeki chuckled.

"When dealing with an underclassman, intimidation _always_ works." He assured her. He hesitated ever so slightly before shrugging off his concern and offering, "C'mon, I'll walk you to your subway station, since we don't have practice." Kagome broke into a wide smile.

"Thanks! Let me get my shoes, and I'll be ready to go." Doumeki nodded, and Kagome darted off to her shoe locker. He leaned against the wall, and thoroughly investigated his predicament. From all the signs, he had a crush on one of his closest friends, and she _would_ be the one member of their group who was blatantly uninterested in dating. What the Hell was he getting himself into?

A few minutes later, as he and Kagome were outside walking past the windows of one of the first floor classroom, they heard a familiar, highly depressed voice wailing from the interior.

"Himawari-chan caught a cold and didn't come to school today!" Doumeki rolled his eyes. Honestly, could Watanuki be any louder? Suddenly, a playful smirk crossed his features, as he walked over to the open window, and called,

"Oh, shut up!" Kagome giggled behind him, but Watanuki ignored him.

"She didn't come! Today! February 14!" He continued despairingly, "Himawari-chan! Get well soon! Very soon!" This time, it was Kagome who spoke.

"Himawari-chan didn't come to school today? Shame. I guess that means Doumeki will have to eat her chocolate. Fondant doesn't keep very well." This time, Watanuki whirled to face his friends.

"What are _you_ doing?" He snarled at Doumeki, "And what are you doing _there?_"

"I could ask you the same thing." Doumeki commented as he vaulted over the window ledge and into the classroom. He then turned around to help Kagome with her less acrobatic entry.

"I had it all planned!" Watanuki wailed loudly, "Himawari-chan and I would casually stop by the Home-Ec classroom after school, and she would taste my exquisite creation! I even owe the Home-Ec teacher for letting me borrow the room, _and_ I heated the fondant to the perfect temperature!" By the end of the rant, Watanuki was weeping copiously. Kagome just shook her head as she moved to comfort her senpai. Doumeki's eyes narrowed slightly as he pretended not to notice by investigating the fondant. Inside, he was quietly seething at the loss of Kagome's attention.

That was when he caught sight of the fork. A mildly evil glint entered his eyes; he would be the first to admit that revenge _did_ have its appeal. Besides, the fondant _did_ look good... Before he could talk himself out of it, he picked up the fork, and took a bite out of the chocolate treat.

"GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Watanuki shrieked. Doumeki glanced at Kagome, and saw her with a hand pressed to her lips, eyes twinkling with mirth, and evidently trying very hard not to laugh. "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?"

"Ah, yes," Doumeki stated coolly, ignoring the fact that Watanuki was frantically attempting to choke him. It was not as if the other boy had sufficient upper body strength to do so. "The chocolate in the center _is_ warm." Ignoring the fact that his head was now being shaken violently, Doumeki scooped up another bite of fondant, listening to Watanuki's shrill demands that he spit it out. Revenge was sweet indeed, and Kagome found it entertaining. Perfect. Wordlessly, he set the fork down with a clatter. Watanuki stared in horror at the now empty plate, before letting out a despairing wail. Kagome laughed.

"There, there, Watanuki-senpai. You wouldn't have been able to give that to Himawari-senpai when she got back anyways, it wouldn't have kept very well." She reassured him. "And I'm sure Doumeki appreciated it."

"Ahn. _Can_ you make anything that tastes bad?" He asked, out of genuine curiosity. Wordlessly, he picked up the cup of hot chocolate next to the plate and passed it to Kagome. She accepted with a smile, as Watanuki answered indignantly.

"Of course it's not bad! Oh, GOD, this is bad!" Doumeki's eyebrows rose, impressed in spite of himself at the five second shift between emotional states, and the one that immediately followed, "No, the taste is good, I mean... but today is..." Suddenly, his eyes fell on Kagome as she sipped on the hot chocolate. "GYAAAAAAH! Not the hot chocolate, too!" This time, it was Kagome's turn for her eyebrows to raise.

"Watanuki-senpai, does it really matter if I drink this? It's not like Himawari-senpai would be able to, even if you _had_ saved it." She pointed out dryly. Watanuki looked down, and muttered

"Well... I guess not. But it's all over! My chocolate, my choco!" Kagome patted his shoulder consolingly. Doumeki had a bad feeling about this.

"It's alright, senpai. Come on, Doumeki-senpai and I will walk you to Yuuko's." Doumeki's stomach plummeted. There was the reason for the bad feeling.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

Kagome walked between her two friends, trying very hard to keep them from needling each other _too _much. Watanuki was still depressed about his ploy to win Himawari's favor with chocolate failing so spectacularly, and Doumeki seemed particularly antagonistic towards Watanuki for some reason. She just shrugged it off, and settled in for a very entertaining walk.

"What's with the doom and gloom face?" Doumeki asked in his usual droll tones.

"I guess everything is all bright and shiny for _you_!" Watanuki hissed, gesturing down at the extra bag Doumeki carried, "Just _look _at all the chocolate you got!" Kagome felt a flash of insecurity at the thought of Doumeki comparing her chocolate to all the rest he had received, before she scolded herself. It was just chocolate. And just giri-choco at that, no matter how much she wished she had the guts for it to have been otherwise.

"On top of _that_, on the very day of Valentine's Day, my chocolate was eaten by this _idiot_!" Watanuki concluded with a wail.

"What, someone gave _you_ chocolate, right?" Doumeki asked innocently. Watanuki nodded grudgingly, and fished the jar of chocolate balls Kagome had given him that morning out of his bag.

"Yeah, this." He muttered. Kagome winced. So, her chocolate had been the only chocolate Watanuki had received for the day. She felt rather badly about that. She noticed Doumeki looking at her enquiringly. She nodded slightly, indicating that she had, indeed, been the one to give Watanuki his chocolate.

"I see. So, only one person saw fit to give you chocolate?" Doumeki asked. Kagome was rather touched that he had been kind enough to leave out the fact that _she_, a girl who very obviously was not interested in Watanuki in a romantic fashion, was the one to have done the giving.

"I don't see why girls give chocolate to Mr. Zero Expression Face over here!" Kagome blushed, and looked away.

_Possibly because he's a prominent member of the student body, being a champion archer. Also because he's incredibly good looking. And he's funny... or well, at least he is once you get to know him..._ Kagome forced herself to listen to Watanuki's dark mutterings, and nearly laughed out loud.

"It's a mass hypnosis! It must be!"

"What'll I do? What'll I do?" Kagome and Watanuki both whirled towards the source of the ghostly wail and saw a girl about their age wrapped up in a cute winter coat. Kagome's eyes narrowed. That girl was not human. "What'll I do?" The spirit continued, "I have to find it quickly!" Unhesitatingly, Watanuki stepped forward.

"Is something wrong?" The girl spun around hastily, gasping in surprise. She was rather cute, Kagome noted, in an immature sort of way. Rather like a thirteen year old, she supposed. She was not willing to bet on the spirit actually being that young.

"KYAAAA!" She cried, bringing both her hands to cover her mouth and blushing furiously. "Wha-wha-wha-wha-what'll I dooooo?" She shook her head frantically, her bobbed hair swishing into her face constantly. Kagome fought the urge to tell her to calm down.

"What are you and Watanuki staring at?" Kagome jumped and shivered as Doumeki's breath hit her ear.

"There's a girl standing in front of us. She's a spirit, and rather frantic, at the moment."

"Ahh. I see." Doumeki nodded in understanding.

"I never expected us to meet each other here!" The girl continued, still blushing fervently. Kagome caught the flash of anger in Watanuki's eyes before he resumed talking to the girl, and grinned slightly.

_So, he _didn't_ notice the fact that she's been avoiding looking in his eyes since she noticed us. Crush a mile wide there. _

"Did you drop something?" Watanuki asked solicitously. The girl shook her head slowly.

"N-no, I'm looking for something. For Valentine's Day chocolate, to give to someone wonderful!" She concluded in a mumble. "I wanted the chocolate to be special, but I couldn't find anything like it for so long!" Suddenly, her face brightened as she caught sight of Doumeki. She even clapped her hands together. "But now I've found it!" She explained gleefully.

"Ehh?" Watanuki looked confused, and Kagome had to admit, she was a bit unclear on things herself.

"Right here!" The spirit concluded, and shoved her hand up to the wrist into Doumeki's stomach. The boy stiffened with shock, unable to see what was happening, but Kagome was certain he could feel the spirit's hand _inside of his body_. When the girl pulled out her hand, a glowing, ghostly after-image of Watanuki's chocolate fondant hovered between her palms. "Yaaaay! It looks so delicious!" As she spoke, Doumeki keeled over, forcing Kagome to rush in order to catch him enough to lower him gently to the ground. He was solidly unconscious.

"Doumeki, oi, Doumeki!" Watanuki yelled, ignoring the spirit. "What happened to-" Watanuki turned to look at the now seriously guilty looking girl.

"Um... I wanted to... g-give... m-my chocolate..." She said softly, eyes tearing up before she started crying in earnest. A whirl of wind surrounded her, sweeping her into the air as she escaped from what Kagome guessed must be a truly painful experience for her.

"Sh-she flew..." Watanuki whispered, awed.

"Of course she flew, Watanuki-senpai, most spirits _do_." Kagome commented dryly. Suddenly, her eyes flew open and she leaned forward to investigate Doumeki more closely. "Oh, no..." Kagome whispered, "Oh no, no, no. Watanuki, run and go get Yuuko-san. We're going to need-"

"Oh, don't bother Kagome-chan, I'm already here." Yuuko's voice popped up behind them. Kagome yelped, then looked back at Yuuko.

"His soul is missing, isn't it? That spirit accidently took it along with the chocolate." Yuuko nodded gravely.

"Very good, Kagome-chan."

"Wait a minute... doesn't that mean that if we leave Doumeki the way he is, he'll stay that way... _forever?_" Watanuki groaned as Yuuko and Kagome nodded solemnly. "And that one spirit only showed up because of me!"

"Yes..." Yuuko said musingly, "That girl is not something you meet by accident."

"So you're saying that this is all my fault?" Watanuki asked pitifully.

"Yep!" Yuuko answered so cheerily, Kagome almost laughed.

"What do we do to bring him back to normal?" Yuuko smiled sweetly.

"I can tell you, but it'll cost you plenty!" She told him in a sing-song voice.

"The last thing I want to do is help him, but I'll never sleep at night if his condition is my fault!" Watanuki retorted angrily.

"Then we're agreed." Yuuko waved a hand negligently as she spoke, "I'll deduct it from your paycheck!" Kagome winced slightly, knowing how very much that would suck to have _more _time added onto his servitude. Watanuki collapsed to the ground in misery, but picked himself up admirably. Yuuko looked up at the skies for a long moment, before Kagome caught sight of an enormous black bird, being piloted by Mokona. It landed in front of Yuuko and Watanuki, raising an equally enormous cloud of dust.

"IT'S HUGE!" Watanuki shrieked.

"Oh, beautiful, Mokona!" Yuuko called, "You're just too cool!"

"Yep!" Mokona agreed cheerfully. Yuuko turned to Watanuki, and ordered.

"Board the bird, and get going after that girl!

"Yuuko, you've always been a bit extreme, but there are limits!" Watanuki grumbled as he got onto the bird.

"Watanuki," Kagome said softly from her position next to Doumeki's body, "If you don't get Doumeki's soul back within a few hours, he," She took a deep breath, forcing herself to contemplate the awful idea, "He won't wake up again. Ever." Yuuko nodded in agreement.

"We'll keep an eye on him. You go get that chocolate."

"Leave that to us!" Mokona chirped as he cracked the reins to make the bird take off. As Watanuki and the bird became small specks in the sky, Kagome turned her attention back to Doumeki. His prone state reminded her all to well of her time spent in Urasoe's herbal bath.

"Why don't you put his head in your lap?" Kagome looked up sharply into Yuuko's laughing face. "Come on, you know you want to. And don't you think your lap would make a better pillow than the concrete?" The older woman added teasingly.

"_Yuuko-san_! That would be inappropriate! What if he doesn't_ want_ his head in my lap?" Kagome asked plaintively. Yuuko snorted.

"Riiiight. He only stares at you because you're unusual. Of course." Kagome blushed slowly. Doumeki stared at her? Did... did that mean he _liked _her? Kagome shook her head to clear it of silly thoughts. Of course Doumeki liked her, they were friends. That was all. Just friends. InuYasha had made it abundantly clear that was all she could really hope for in regards to guys. Still... that concrete _did_ look cold... and there was no telling when Watanuki would be getting back...

Kagome carefully sat down, and lifted Doumeki's head into her lap.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

About a few hours later, Watanuki returned, chocolate soul in hand, to find Kagome running her fingers through Doumeki's hair absently while she chatted with Yuuko.

"You're back!" Yuuko called, "How did it go?"

"These guys with black wings on their backs... they made a hostile aerial attack on us." Watanuki panted. "Yuuko... what was that girl?" Yuuko smiled mysteriously.

"She's a Zashiki-Warashi."

"EHHHHHH?"

"Zashiki-Warashi are pretty susceptible to evil and bad thoughts, but it's rare to see them nowadays. Usually, they take shelter in backwater mountain locations that have a strong spiritual element, along with their Karasu Tengu. " Yuuko sighed melodramatically, "But today is February 14! A day when a girl can't help but go out and give symbols of love!" Kagome caught the maniacal twinkle in Yuuko's eye, and knew a joke was coming at Watanuki's expense. "And you playboy! You received chocolate from a very cute Zashiki-Warashi!"

"Ehehehehe... Wait a minute, THIS WAS MADE BY ME!"

"They sound a bit like miko." Kagome interjected thoughtfully. "Now, I hate to interrupt, but could we give Doumeki back his soul?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, sure." Watanuki knelt down next to Doumeki, and gently lowered the fondant onto Doumeki's chest. With a swirl of wind, the soul slid back into its body. Doumeki's eyes slid open.

"Eh?" He muttered, noting that he was lying on the ground, with Watanuki hovering over him. Suddenly, he looked up, and saw Kagome's concerned face break into a smile of relief.

"Welcome back." She said softly.

"Kagome? What happened?"

"Doumeki! Just now, Watanuki received chocolate from a very cute young girl! It was chocolate he made himself, buuuuuut..." Her eyes sparkled. "Do you want to hear the whole story?" Kagome could see Doumeki hesitate.

"Maybe in a little while. I told Kagome I'd walk her to the subway station, and it's getting late." Kagome glanced around, and realized that the street lamps were burning.

"Oh no!" She yelped. "Okaa-san is _not_ going to be happy with me..." Doumeki got up slowly, and extended a hand to help her up.

"Don't worry, I'll get you to your subway. Come on."

"Bye Yuuko-san, bye Watanuki-senpai! I'll see you tomorrow!" She called over her shoulder as they left.

"Do you want to tell me what was going on back there? The last thing I remember is the feeling that something pulled something out of my stomach, and then I was waking up with my head in your lap."

"A Zashiki-Warashi was trying to get the chocolate fondant you ate earlier, and wound up taking your soul along with it." She explained. "Think of it as a sort of... extended faint." Doumeki's eyebrows rose.

"Alright then... One more question." Kagome tilted her head to the side, puzzled.

"What more could you want to know?"

"Why do you seem so familiar with the concept of having a stolen soul?" Kagome froze, and looked down, her bangs covering her eyes.

"Because I've been there before. I know what it's like to feel someone pull out your soul, and what it's like to be an empty shell. The others don't. I don't think they really want to, either."

"You might be right." The two walked the rest of the way to the subway in a companionable silence, letting their thoughts wander.

It was not until after she got home that Kagome realized Doumeki had never let go of her hand after helping her up.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

I live! I promise! I'm sorry for the extended period of time between updates. I meant to write some while I was on break, but yeah... never really happened. At any rate, it's done now. Let me know what you think!

Also, thanks to all the lovely people who review this story! It makes me very, VERY happy when people do. It's even better than favorites and story alerts!

A few notes on subject matter:

Valentine's Day in Japan is celebrated by girls giving friends, co-workers, classmates, love interests etc. one of two forms of chocolate.

1) Giri-choko, or 'obligation chocolate'– Given too friends, co-workers, and other people to whom the girl would like to show gratitude. For example, in this story, Kagome is making a jar of her chocolate balls to give to the doctor who lied about her health to keep her from getting expelled.

2) Honmei-choko – Given to a love interest to express or reaffirm the girl's affections.

White Day takes place on March 14, and requires that the guy receiving the chocolate on Valentine's Day needs to repay the favor by giving the girl a gift at least three times more valuable. This is why Yuuko sent chocolate fondant off to the Tsubasa travellors; she wanted to get some nice presents!


	10. Chapter Nine: Of Bindings and Closeness

Once again, let's look at the facts: over the summer, I got in the middle of intense negotiations centered around the fact that the summer camp where I worked for seven weeks was having some issues with forking over my paycheck. (Ahh, the joys of computer glitches). I also freaked out over the prices of textbooks for college. Do you think this would be the case if I was the owner of the rights for either _InuYasha: A Feudal Fairy Tale_ or _XxxHoLiC_? No. No I wouldn't. (Ok, maybe the salary bit. But definitely not the textbooks!)

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

The instant that Kagome saw Himawari in the hallway after school two days, she knew that her happy respite from any Himawari-related Watanuki rants was at a close. She resisted the urge to sigh sadly. As sweet and lovely as Himawari was, Kagome could tell that there was something ever so slightly off about that girl, and it made her uncomfortable about how close she was to Watanuki. Still, that did not stop her from recognizing that the other girl was her friend, and that she was a very definitely a part of their group. She just hoped that she was not the girl that the fortune teller had mentioned that she would trust greatly. As long as Himawari had an aura that Kagome could tell warped things, she was not going to be able to trust her completely. Thus it was that she was present for the presentation of giri-choco to her two male friends. Himawari had even gotten her a small package of the dark chocolate that she favored. Kagome had handed over the jar of chocolate balls that had been living in her locker since Valentine's Day in exchange. As expected, Watanuki went into gales of joy at the fact that his beloved Himawari was giving _him_ Valentine's Day chocolate... right up until he discovered that Doumeki had received them as well. At that point, Kagome decided that it was probably in her best interests just to head over to the shop alone, said a quick goodbye to Himawari and Doumeki, and made her escape.

Alas, with an employer such as Yuuko, her escape could not last long. A few hours later, she began needling Watanuki in the middle of the supermarket where they were grocery shopping.

"Aren't you glad you received chocolate from Himawari-chan? You and Doumeki together?" Kagome face met her palm at Yuuko's words. Watanuki psychotic rant mode in a public location, here they went.

"DON'T PUT ME TOGETHER WITH _HIM!_" Watanuki raged. Kagome's eyes widened suddenly as she thought of something. _"You'll also have a male friend whom you will always fight with, and your relations will run deeper." _Her lips curled into a slightly evil smile. Well, well, well. It looked like at least _part_ of the old Fortune Teller's words had come true. She wondered if she should let that little tidbit of information slip to her rather excitable co-worker, or if she should keep her mouth shut. One look at the slightly crazed look in Watanuki's eyes, and Kagome decided to keep her mouth shut and maintain her sanity.

"That makes the fourth chocolate you've received this year!" Yuuko informed the still ranting Watanuki, who halted mid-yell.

"Huh? How do you get four?"

"Well, I gave you chocolate balls, so that's one. Himawari-senpai gave you a box, so that's two. The Zashiki-Warashi gave you the creepy ghost fondant, so that's three..." Her eyes narrowed in concentration before it clicked, and she had to resist the urge to snicker. Trust Yuuko-san to think of somethink like this. "And then Yuuko-san gave you _real_ fondant, so that's four." Yuuko beamed.

"Exactly, Kagome-chan!"

"WHAT KIND OF GIVING IS THAT?"

"The manipulative kind." Kagome answered promptly.

"It is one definite kind of giving," Yuuko assured him cheerily, "There are all sorts of ways to use words!"

"Why, you..." Watanuki began, but was cut off by the loud conversation of two college aged girls.

"Buy that one!"

"But that fish is a little too expensive, we could go wrong buying a fish that is too high priced."

"But doesn't it look good? Let's get it!" That seemed to settle it as the two girls, who Kagome now noticed appeared to be twins, or at the very least sisters, placed the fish in their cart and continued onwards.

"Next! What'll we buy?"

"Let's get some steak for when we realize we made a mistake with the fish."

"Oh, you just don't have enough confidence in yourself!" Kagome stiffened. She had heard phrases like that a few too many times, and all from InuYasha. Granted, his were usually a little crueler, but it held the same sense of comparison, the same sense of never being able to measure up to an unachievable standard as this girl was receiving from her twin. She felt a pang of sympathy. She knew how much that hurt.

"Wow! Identical twins, huh?" Watanuki exclaimed, not noticing the evident discomfort on Kagome's face, and the icy coldness on Yuuko's as she watched them go. "Oh, Yuuko-san, are you getting hungry for fish?" Silently, Yuuko reached out and smacked him upside the head.

"I was thinking," She added somberly, "That those twins are going to eat steak tonight." Kagome shivered slightly. She did not like the implications of Yuuko's words.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

Kagome was getting ready to head over to Yuuko's when she saw Doumeki walking around with a clipboard. Curious, she waved, and headed over to him.

"What are you doing?" Doumeki sighed, looking annoyed.

"Making the rounds. My year has clean-up duty, and since I'm one of the class representatives, I'm stuck making sure everyone works." Kagome smiled wryly.

"Let me guess: No one actually wants to do anything?"

"Got it in one. Speaking of which..." He gestured over to where Watanuki seemed to have spaced out over his broom. "Shall we?" Kagome grinned, and joined him in walking over to her co-worker. Once they were within ear shot, they could hear Watanuki's mumbling.

"Bonds that only humans can use, huh?" Doumeki glanced at Kagome who shrugged in equal confusion. She had gone home early last night to study for a rather massive English test, and had missed out on some of the explanations of what Yuuko had meant at the supermarket. Doumeki nodded, took a deep breath, and yelled. "HEY! No trying to get out of the clean-up job!" Watanuki jerked up and started screaming right back.

"I'M NOT TRYING TO GET OUT OF ANYTHING! WHAT ABOUT YOU? WHAT ABOUT SWEEPING? WHAT ABOUT THE TRASH?"

"Ahhh, Watanuki-senpai? He's a class representative. He's making rounds." Kagome explained gently.

"ARRRRGH! WHY IS A JERK LIKE YOU A CLASS REPRESENTATIVE?"

"In my class, nobody announced their candidacy, so the class voted for whoever they wanted for representative. Ask anybody you want." Kagome's eyebrows rose. Doumeki really _was_ popular, if everyone voted for him out of the entire class. Kagome had been perfectly happy to blend into the background. Besides, no one had known her, so she wasn't exactly an ideal candidate.

"BUT THAT MAKES IT HARDER TO UNDERSTAND! WHO WOULD VOTE FOR A JERK LIKE THIS? I WANTED HIMAWARI-CHAN TO MAKE THE ROUNDS AND CHECK ON ME!" He wailed. Kagome rolled her eyes, and Doumeki looked equally annoyed.

"Kunogi is making rounds at the gym."

"Now, it's only right for Himawari-chan to be our representative, I voted for her too! She's so cute, and smart! Himawari-chan is the best!"

"Himawari-chan's aura is also warped." Kagome muttered darkly. Doumeki caught her words, and frowned slightly in a way that asked for elaboration. Kagome shook her head in response. There was no way she would say anything about Himawari and her warped aura in the presence of Watanuki. It was not worth the rant she'd receive in exchange. After nodding in understanding, Doumeki effectively changed the subject.

"What were you saying about bonds?"

"DON'T GO EAVESDROPPING!" Watanuki shrieked.

"If you don't want to be heard, don't say things out loud." Doumeki informed him coolly. "Now spill it."

"WHY DO I HAVE TO TALK ON _YOUR_ ORDERS?"

"Watanuki-senpai, could you please explain what you were talking about?" Kagome put in angelically, "It sounds like it has something to do with those twins we saw at the supermarket yesterday." Immediately, Watanuki went down from rant mode to a significantly calmer version.

"Yeah, it had to do with them. I saw one of them in front of the store last night. She'd lost her contact, and I helped her look for it. We didn't find it, though. Not really surprising, because it was starting to get dark, but Yuuko said it was significant."

"Really?" Kagome asked, a bit confused, "Why?"

"Well, when I offered to help her look for it, she said that we probably wouldn't find it, and there was this weird ripple effect when she said so. It was pretty weird. Yuuko said that we were bound not to find it, and then started talking about bonds, and bonds that only humans can use. I didn't really understand it, honestly..."

"So, in the end you weren't able to find the contact?" Doumeki asked suddenly.

"Didn't I just say that?" Watanuki snapped back.

"And... you're sure those twins are really human?" He demanded. Kagome hid a smile behind her hand. Watanuki might not realize it, but Doumeki was worried about him. Definitely fulfilment of the fortune-tellers words.

"Huh?" Aaaand... apparently Watanuki had not even thought about a different possibility.

"It's happened before. That... what did you call her, the one who stole my soul..."

"The Zashiki-Warashi." Kagome supplied helpfully.

"Right. The Zashiki-Warashi wasn't human. So, there's at least a chance that these twins aren't either. After all, they really seem to like you don't they?"

"What does THAT mean?" Watanuki snapped.

"Ghosts and stuff. They really seem to like you. Maybe the Zashiki-Warashi wasn't a bad spirit, but you can't guarantee that all of them won't be."

"E-even if that's true, it doesn't have anything to do with you!" Watanuki informed him sulkily, while Kagome shook her head sadly. Classic Watanuki denial. Doumeki's eyes narrowed.

"Yes, it does." Kagome blinked in surprise. For once, Doumeki had decided that he was not going to put up with Watanuki ignoring their friendship over his crazed idea that they were rivals over Himawari. This was new. Watanuki hesitated for a moment, before replying.

"Ok, one of them _did_ take your soul for a while, but–"

"That's not what I meant." Doumeki growled, "If something happens to you, I..." He trailed off for a moment, then continued in a distinctly lighter tone of voice, "I may never be able to eat a boxed lunch again."

"AM I SUPPOSED TO _KEEP_ MAKING YOU LUNCH?" Kagome giggled behind her hand, her eyes full of understanding. She knew that Doumeki had deliberately changed what he was going to say at the last minute, probably because Watanuki was not really ready to hear that Doumeki was worried about him as a friend.

"At any rate, I saw them too, Doumeki-senpai. They were definitely human." She glanced at her watch, wincing. "And, unfortunately, I have to run. Yuuko's expecting me early since archery got canceled. I'll see you at archery in the morning, Doumeki! And Watanuki, you might want to finish sweeping soon. Yuuko's expecting you to stop by around dinner time." And with that, Kagome darted off to Yuuko's shop.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

The next day during morning practice, Doumeki told Kagome about the strange encounter with one of the twins from the day before.

"The worst part is, it looks like I'm all but going to have to go with Watanuki when he meets those twins, just to keep him out of trouble. I have a bad feeling about those girls." He also had a bad feeling about the fact that the girl had invited _him_ along too, even though she had never met him before. Kagome nodded with a sigh.

"Watanuki-senpai _does _seem to attract an inordinate amount of trouble, and the fact that he doesn't know how to channel his powers to deal with it tends to make him a walking target for the nastier spiritual elements. I should know, I wasn't _quite_ as bad as he was when I first found out about what I could do, but I chalk that up to the fact that I figured out how to do basic channeling within a few days. Still, I had help, and if I hadn't, I would have been a goner." She closed her eyes, looking depressed. Doumeki had no idea what was going through her head, but if it made her look like _that_, then he did _not_ like it. He plowed onward with his plan to keep his sanity during this little outing.

"So, do you think that you could just so happen to accidentally turn up at the café? Between the two of us we should, in theory, be able to keep anything _too_ bad from happening." Kagome hesitated, clearly reluctant.

"Well... I wasn't really invited..."

"You wouldn't show up with Watanuki and I," Doumeki hastened to assure her, "We would just so happen to see you there, and invite you to join us." Kagome smiled slightly, but it did not quite reach her eyes. Doumeki did _not_ like it. Seeing Kagome _this _upset about something was surprisingly unpleasant.

"Really, Doumeki-senpai, I don't think it's a good idea." She paused for a moment, chewing on her lower lip. Doumeki could see her internally debating whether or not she would elaborate before her eyes cleared and she continued, "I don't particularly want to be a third wheel, and besides, I probably won't be very good company. Tomorrow was the birthday of a recently departed family member." Doumeki winced. He knew how that felt

"I understand. I'm not exactly pleasant company on my grandfather's birthday myself. Were you... were you very close, then?" He regretted the question almost immediately as Kagome teared up.

"Yes. I took care of Shippou a lot. My little brother used to joke that he was practically my son." She said softly, and Doumeki wanted to slap himself for being so inconsiderate as to make her remember something that obviously made her so sad.

"I'm sorry." He said, and put his hand on her shoulder. "I'll deal with Watanuki. Hopefully, he won't make _too_ much of a fool of himself. In the meantime," he gestured to the now vacant archery targets, "We're up." The pair strode forward to take their shots, their thoughts turning to happier places.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

The day after Watanuki and Doumeki's outing with the girls, Kagome walked up the stairs of the subway station and directly into a solidly male chest. She yelped and nearly slipped back down the stairs. Instead, she found herself caught by a very strong arm.

"Careful." Doumeki told her, looking amused. Kagome blushed, knowing that she liked her current position entirely too much.

"Thank you. Ummm... what are you doing here?" She asked as she moved to stand next to him. It was a valid question, as it was the weekend and she could not come up with any real reason for him to be passing her subway station.

"Waiting for you." He answered calmly. " I asked Watanuki if you were working today." Kagome blush deepened. She was secretly very pleased with the news. She had no idea _why_ he had felt the need to come see her, but she was definitely happy about it.

"Oh. Well, thank you." Doumeki shrugged, and started walking in the general direction of the shop.

"Not a problem. It's a little too early for most of the shrine visitors and a little late for the early morning types. And you're going to have to take the lead. I don't have a clue where Yuuko's shop is, beyond 'relatively close to the school'." Kagome giggled and nodded, before the boy continued, "Watanuki didn't make _too _much of a fool of himself, other than going into a Kunogi inspired rant that was relatively brief. The girls were fairly normal, although the younger one seemed to be oddly pessimistic, and the younger one..." Doumeki shuddered slightly, "Was entirely too clingy. Why would she be clinging to a second year high school student? She's a second year _college student_!" Kagome could not resist. She laughed, really smiling for the first time since the anniversary of her meeting Shippou the day before.

"She didn't understand personal boundaries very well, did she? Turn here." She directed, and Doumeki did so.

"Not at _all_. I made it as clear that I wasn't interested as I possibly could without actually saying 'I'm not interested', but she _still_ didn't stop." A wide grin split across Kagome's face.

"Do you have any idea how many high school boys would kill to be in your shoes right now?" Doumeki glared.

"If they want her, they can have her. I'm not interested. _Please _tell me you aren't doing anything tomorrow afternoon, and you wouldn't mind doing me a huge favor. _Please_." His desperation was blatantly apparent, causing Kagome's grin to slide into a smirk.

"I take it you and Watanuki got invited to do something else, and you are in desperate need of some back up who will actually understand what's going on?"

"_Yes_. I refuse to enter a movie theater knowing that I'm probably going to have to sit next to her, especially when the movie that they invited us to is a horror film." Kagome winced in sympathy.

"You'd just as soon dodge the bruises on your arm?"

"Exactly."

"Weeeeeell..." Kagome pretended to consider, before smiling, "As I'm not doing anything tomorrow afternoon, and the archery club needs you to keep your arm in good condition for the tournament in a few weeks, I suppose I could help you out, provided that you allow me make snide comments about how their 'spirits' are completely unrealistic under my breath." Doumeki's mouth twisted into his trademark smirk.

"Isn't that half the fun of horror movies?" Kagome smile widened.

"Oh, good, so I won't be snarking alone. None of my friends from middle school understood why I would just stare at the screen going 'you know, according to all the old stories, that's not how a vengeful spirit works...' while they were shrieking. It only got worse after I actually had experience with the things."

"I know _exactly_ what you mean. It's pretty clear that horror film writers haven't bothered to do anything beyond the most basic research." Kagome sighed.

"And they do it because no one but shrine brats notice it. Can you say 'we are losing our cultural heritage'?" Doumeki snorted.

"No doubt about it. Why do you think shrines are doing so poorly?" Kagome nodded glumly.

"The really scary thing is that for a few years, I thought that it didn't matter. I mean, they were just a bunch of old stories, how could they _possibly_ have any affect on the _real_ world?" Her smile turned bitter, "I listened, but not without complaining. Now? _I'm_ the one looking at the old scrolls in the shed, digging for information." Doumeki nodded.

"I think all shrine kids go through a stage like that. I know _I_ had one, but it stopped pretty quickly when my grandfather got sick. I guess I couldn't help thinking that if they meant so much to the old man that he felt the compulsive need to make me listen to them, even when I _know_ it hurt his throat to tell them, there had to be something true to them." Kagome nodded in understanding as they turned down the alley containing Yuuko's shop. After a short distance, Kagome stopped in front of the gate.

"Well, there it is. Thanks for walking me, Doumeki." Her companion's eyes narrowed.

"Kagome... there's nothing there. Just an empty lot with a gate." Kagome blinked, then she smiled.

"So, _that's_ what the barrier was there for. I wondered." Seeing Doumeki's confusion, she explained, "The shop's there all right, you just can't see it. It's not an ordinary shop, after all." Doumeki's eyes narrowed.

"Elaborate." Kagome sighed.

"Ok. Yuuko has a magical barrier around the shop, probably to keep nasty stuff out, for the most part. Apparently, it also serves an alternative function." She wondered how best to explain what she was fairly certain the barrier did. After a moment she had decided on her method. "Doumeki-senpai, you prefer to take care of yourself, correct?" He looked at her as though she was slightly insane.

"Yes, of course."

"If you want something, then you put in the necessary effort to get it. You don't try to take short cuts, and you thus far haven't encountered anything that really _needs_ the help of the occult, beyond what you yourself can do, to take care of."

"Right..." Kagome saw the beginnings of comprehension in his eyes, and continued.

"So you wouldn't need the sort of aid that Yuuko provides. You're not a potential customer, or an employee–"

"I might as well be." He muttered darkly, leading Kagome to giggle.

"True. But you still aren't on the pay roll. At any rate, you don't really _need_ to see the shop. So the barrier around it keeps you from doing so. If you had a the eye that sees spirits, instead of the ability to exorcize them, you'd probably be able to see it anyway." Doumeki nodded slowly.

"My grandfather talked about shields like that a couple times. He said they were notoriously tricky, and really hard to set up and maintain." Kagome nodded fervently.

"Oh, they are. Believe me, I've tried. I can't manage anything near as elegant as this one, though. I'm lucky if I can conceal everything inside it." Doumeki shook his head slowly.

"Is there anything you _can't_ do?" Kagome laughed bitterly, the old words echoing in her ears. _Kikyou wouldn't have messed up that shot. Kikyou could actually _use_ her powers. Kikyou was more powerful..._ She knew all too well how limited her abilities were. InuYasha had made certain of that.

"A lot. I'm not that powerful, and I'm only half-trained at best." Doumeki snorted.

"Liar." Kagome glared.

"What? I am not!"

"Oh, I'll buy that you're not fully trained, but not powerful? Please. If you can make barriers of any kind at all, if you can channel energy at all, with minimal training? You're powerful. According to what my grandfather told me, it takes _years_ for miko and houshi to be able to do anything like what you're talking about without a trade-off. I can do my exorcising because I can't see what I'm dealing with, so that's my trade-off. You? You can see it, you can purify, you can do _so much_, even though you've only known about your abilities for a few years. Why the hell do you think you're not powerful?" He sounded almost... almost angry that she did not believe his words. In all honesty, Kagome had never thought of it that way, always comparing herself to Kikyou and what she had been able to do. There was no way to explain to Doumeki without explaining everything. She looked down, hiding her face.

"I know what I've been told. Thanks for walking me. Yuuko's waiting for me.

"Kagome– "

"I'll see you tomorrow, Doumeki." And Kagome ran, trying to outrace the words that threatened to undermine her entire knowledge of self and power.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

The second she arrived at the movie theater the next day, Kagome went on the alert. She would need to make a nonchalant appearance, preferably _after_ the sisters showed up. She glanced around, trying to find the boys and spotted them next to the twins from the supermarket with relative ease. Poor Doumeki, it was blatantly obvious that the younger sister was interested in him. Deciding to be a good friend, Kagome walked up quickly, calling

"Doumeki-senpai, Watanuki-senpai, is that you?" Doumeki looked up, and Kagome had to resist the urge to laugh at the blatant relief on his face.

"Kagome-chan!" He called back, motioning her over to their group. Kagome was startled by the sudden addition of 'chan' to her name. Doumeki _never_ called her 'Kagome-chan'. She had always been 'Kagome', and she was not really sure how she felt about the sudden change in address. Still, she hurried the rest of the way over with a smile.

"I _thought_ that was you two! Are you going to see a movie as well?" She asked, her voice oozing with innocence. Doumeki had a sudden coughing fit, and could not seem to look her in the eyes at her words. It was Watanuki who answered.

"Yes, we are! The new horror film that came out last week."

"Oh! I've been wanting to see that one too. I've heard good things."

"So why don't you join us, Kagome-chan?" Doumeki put in immediately. Kagome could not help but notice the younger sister's irritation at Doumeki's invitation and added another layer of sickeningly sweet sugar to her smile.

"I'd love to!"

"I'm sorry to interrupt," the younger sister put in sharply, not sounding sorry at all, "But who are you, exactly?"

"Oh!" Kagome faked her surprise, "I'm sorry, but I didn't know you were with them. I'm Higurashi Kagome."

"Kagome-chan is in the archery club with me and works with Watanuki at his part time job. Kagome, this is Sasaki Hikari and the girl next to Watanuki is her twin, Sasaki Kaori." Doumeki explained. Kagome smiled brightly at the older girl.

"It's a pleasure to meet you!" Hikari smile looked just a bit forced as she offered her polite agreement. Doumeki watched in amusement before turning towards the cinema. "Well, shall we?" He asked, smirking a bit as he looked at Kagome. She smirked back, moving next to him and very effectively separating him from Hikari as they entered the theater.

The movie progressed more or less as expected. Kagome managed to arrange things so that she and Doumeki were on the end, with Doumeki on the outside and herself between him and the now highly annoyed younger sister. The two shrine children took a great deal of enjoyment from criticizing the film, all the way to outright laughter.

"Oh come _on_," Kagome groaned as the dead girl's spirit gently took her sister's wrist.

"_Sister, please come with me_? Are they _serious_?" Doumeki asked stunned. "A spirit seeking vengeance on the older sister who arranged for her to get killed in her place would _not_ ask politely. She'd take," He paused consideringly, "Or just kill, depending on how she was feeling."

"I know, right? Kami, don't the screen writers do _any_ research?" She paused for a moment, before adding in an undertone, "I've _dealt _with one of these, and _believe _me, Mayu wasn't this nice. She nearly killed her brother without a second thought." Doumeki nodded.

"That's what grandfather said about the ones he dealt with, too." Suddenly, Kagome felt a disturbance in the air, almost like the chiming of a bell. She whipped her head around to look at its source, and gasped when she saw blood flowing down the older twin's, Kaori, she thought Doumeki said her name was, face. Within moments, the group had panicked, gotten up, and left the theater. Kagome had taken care of the first aid aspect of the situation, and was startled to discover that there was not any trace of an injury on the older girl. She shivered. This _screamed _occult, and it made her very, _very _nervous. She glanced at Doumeki, letting him see the worry and discomfort in her eyes. His own eyes seemed to take in her sentiments before hardening slightly. He came to stand next to her, before turning to Kaori.

"Are you alright?" His question was completely innocuous.

The fact that he placed a comforting hand on Kagome's shoulder was not.

- — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

"It was really weird." Watanuki said the next day at work, "She was looking over at you and Doumeki, and said 'I want to leave now', then next thing I know, there was blood pouring down her face. Her words _can't_ have had anything to do with it... could they?"

"It _can _be exactly that." Yuuko answered calmly from her place reclining on the couch.

"Bu-but to seriously injure oneself like that..." Watanuki protested. Kagome shrugged.

"Girls who cut themselves do worse. Besides, she wasn't hurt at _all_. She didn't have a cut or anything. I should know, I've had to deal with a lot of injuries in the past, and she definitely didn't have one."

"I imagine that Kaori-san wanted to leave _very_ badly." Yuuko commented thoughtfully, "And you've felt this sort of vibration from her in the past, haven't you, Watanuki?" His eyes widened.

"That day with the contact lense..." he whispered.

"Yes, and you never did find that contact lense, did you? She tied the bond herself." Yuuko agreed firmly.

"Then, what you meant about the bonds only people can use," Watanuki hesitated before continuing, "They're words?" He was startled at the way Kagome stiffened next to him. Kagome did not usually startle at anything supernatural.

"Yes. They're scary, you know." Watanuki frowned slightly. For once, Yuuko seemed to be speaking more to Kagome than to him. That was... really unusual. He turned to watch his co-worker, noticing her knuckles had gone white from gripping the ceramic bowl she had been drying too tightly. "You can't take them back once they've left your mouth. You can't act as if they were never said. And without knowing how tightly they can bind, people continued to use them. Words have life, and power. In time, they can even bind one's right to life." By this time, Watanuki was startled to discover that Kagome had gone completely white. He watched her slowly set the bowl down on the draining board before turning towards Yuuko, her head tilted so her bangs hid her eyes from view.

"Yuuko-san, I forgot that my mother asked me to come home a little early tonight. May I go now?" Yuuko's smile took on a mysterious edge.

"But of course, Kagome-chan."

"Thank you, Yuuko-san." Watanuki stared as a clearly rattled Kagome collected her bag from the corner and all but ran from the shop.

"What was _that_ about?" Watanuki asked, confused.

"Unpleasant memories, I would imagine." Yuuko said calmly. "Now, go get me some sake, would you, Watanuki?"

"YOU ALCOHOLIC!"

- — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

Things seemed to calm over the next several weeks. Other than a brief meeting involving just the boys at Hikari's place of employment, the group had little to no interaction with the twins, something for which Kagome was infinitely grateful. She did _not _want to have to think about words binding people. That brought back painful memories, reminding her of her own lack of worth. She did not dwell on InuYasha's constant comparisons between herself and her previous incarnation very often, but those two brought them to the surface for whatever reason. Then March 12th happened.

She, Doumeki, Watanuki, and Himawari were chatting outside of the high school before they left for work or home when one of the twins approached them.

"So this is where you go to school. I didn't recognize the uniform." Himawari looked a bit confused, prompting Kagome to lean over and give a brief explanation while Watanuki greeted her.

"Hello, Hikari-san." The girl giggled.

"Actually, I'm Kaori-chan. A lot of people are mistaking me for my sister these days. It seems I'm more chipper. It's thanks to you, really. I took your words to heart, and I've stopped telling myself that I can't do things. Instead I'm saying 'you won't know until you've tried'! I haven't failed as much since then!" Watanuki grinned.

"That's great! In the future try to say 'it's sure to go well'!" Kaori smiled back.

"Mm! Well, I've got to go. I have a job at one of the nearby cafés. Say, why don't you all come try it?" The teenagers looked at each other, debating.

"Weeell... Yuuko-san probably wouldn't mind too much if we were a little late..." Kagome said hesitantly. Doumeki shrugged.

"Sure. I'll go, if everyone else does." Himawari beamed.

"It sounds like fun!" Watanuki went into rapturous mode.

"If Himawari-chan wants to, then we will definitely go!"

"Great!" Kaori said cheerfully, "Follow me!"

The café proved to be one of those cutesy cafés that struck fear into the hearts of all entrants with a certain degree of sensibility. Kaori left them to await their table, while she hurried to the back to change into uniform. As soon as she departed, Kagome and Doumeki shuddered slightly.

"Don't get me wrong, I like cute things as much as the next girl, but this? This is more than a little disturbing." Kagome murmured.

"You won't get an argument from me. Although, I will admit, it suits her down to the ground." Doumeki muttered back. Kagome rolled her eyes.

"Oh, that it does. That it does."

"This café is so adorable!" Himawari gushed, leading Kagome to roll her eyes. They had just been seated when a voice called out,

"Oh! Hello!" The group turned to look, and found themselves face to face with Hikari. She was beaming, mostly at Doumeki, Kagome noticed with a feeling of growing irritation. "Do you mind if I sit here?" She asked, indicating the empty seat between Doumeki and Himawari. Just as Doumeki opened his mouth to answer (with an emphatic 'no', if his facial expression was any guide), Watanuki answered for him.

"Oh, sure." Kagome resisted the urge to cover her eyes with her hand. Watanuki really could not see what was in front of his face, could he?

"My older sister surprised me by saying that she got a job here," Hikari continued as she sat down, "At home, she's such a klutz! Always breaking plates, I hope she's alright." Kagome frowned slightly, noticing that Hikari's voice seemed to raise as she berated her older sister's clumsiness.

"I wonder..." She murmured, before turning slightly. Sure enough, there was Kaori, walking towards them in her uniform. It was very evident from her defeated posture that she had indeed heard what her younger sister had wanted her to hear.

"Deliberate?" Doumeki's voice said very softly near her ear, making her jump slightly before relaxing.

"Yes. I can't believe she would do something like that." She murmured back, "My little brother would _never_ talk about me being a klutz at my job if I worked as a waitress."

"Can I get you something?" The very obviously subdued Kaori asked.

"I'd like a cappuccino, please!" Himawari requested cheerfully.

"Ah! Me too!" Watanuki added hastily, stars readily apparent in his eyes.

"I suppose I'll take a milk tea..." Hikari said slowly, sounding concerned. Doumeki shrugged, turning to Kagome and asking

"Split a pot of green tea with me?" Kagome smiled, hoping that she wasn't blushing furiously like she thought she was.

"Sure."

"Then we'll have that." Doumeki said calmly.

"I've got it." Kaori said softly, having hastily scribbled down their order. "It'll be right out." Kagome watched her walk away, looking defeated, before she looking down to study her lap carefully.

"I don't get it. She was fine earlier." Doumeki muttered. She sighed softly, understanding the reasoning far too well for her liking. How often had she done the same after a particularly nasty round of comparisons and insults from InuYasha?

"It's a side effect." She said quietly, so quietly that she was relatively certain Doumeki would not be able to hear her over the three way chattering coming from the other occupants of their table. "If someone you love tells you that it's impossible, it usually is." Doumeki's head turned towards her lightning fast.

"No, it isn't." He contradicted. Kagome smiled bitterly.

"Heh. You say that because you haven't had it happen." Just as Doumeki opened his mouth to argue, Hikari's voice broke into their reverie.

"You'd better be careful! If you drop that pot, it'll be a disaster!" The pair turned just in time for Kagome to feel a magical vibration in the air... and see a pot of hot tea being dropped right over her lap. Or, rather, she realized, right where her lap would have been, if Doumeki had not grabbed her around the waist and hastily pulled her to his side.

"Th-thank you." She muttered, blushing furiously.

"Any time." He assured her.

"I'm _so_ sorry!" Kaori gasped as she moved to start cleaning up the mess of tea and ceramic pieces. Kagome smiled at her reassuringly.

"No harm done. Here, let me help you with that."

"No, no! I've got it–"

"I _told _you working here would tax you far too much to do you any good!" Hikari berated her older sister. Kagome could almost see the threads of the words wrapping around Kaori, binding her in place, and shivered.

"I– I..." Kaori started, only to be interrupted by her twin once again.

"Look at your hands, they're covered with cuts!" Kagome followed the sister's advice, and saw several bandages, probably for insignificant cuts that were standard to a waitress's job, on Kaori's hands. "If you work at a job like this, your wounds will never close!" A vibration filled the air, and almost immediately the cuts on Kaori's hands began to bleed profusely. She looked at Kagome, almost as though sensing the kinship that the two shared, and whispered.

"I... I didn't..."

"What happened?" Hikari interrupted, "Did you hurt yourself again?" She took her sister's shoulders, seeming to almost beg, but Kagome thought she could see a glimmer of triumph in the younger twin's eyes as she took in her older sister's condition. "Please! You really have to quit doing work like this! You're bad at talking to strangers, so who can expect you to take orders? And remember that time at the coffee shop when you burned your leg with hot coffee? If you do that too many times, it'll scar!" Taking in Kaori's fearful, defeated expression, one all too similar to one she herself had worn for months at a time in the Sengoku Jidai, Kagome snapped.

"Stop it! Can't you see you're making it worse?" Hikari turned on her, startled and angry.

"She's my sister! I'm just worried about her–"

"You don't know that any of that's true!" Watanuki said sounding just as angry as Hikari, before turning to the obviously depressed Kaori and adding "If you start worrying about failing again, you'll never do anything! Regrets are for _after_ something happens."

"But what if something serious happens?" Hikari asked, anger still evident. Kagome began to wonder how much of this was about Kaori's safety, and how much was about family politics and dynamics when a calm hand was rested on her shoulder.

"Then she'll take responsibility for the actions she chooses to take." Yuuko's voice came from over Kagome's shoulder. She knelt next to Kaori and continued to speak soothingly, "It's easy, isn't it, to be tied down by pessimistic words? 'I can't', 'it's impossible'. If you say those words, or allow others to say them," Here she glanced back at Kagome, who was sitting as still as a marble statue and was slowly going equally white, before continuing. "It's so easy to fail."

"Who is she? Do you know her?" She could hear Hikari asking Doumeki and Himawari in awe.

"She's Kagome and Watanuki's employer." Doumeki answered shortly, before turning his attention back to what Yuuko was saying. He knew it would be important for Kagome as well as for Kaori. He did not know where Kagome's confidence in her power had gone so awry, but he had a feeling that what Yuuko was saying had a great deal to do with it.

"If your condition makes you happy, then you can stay that way. However..." Here she trailed off, glancing back at Kagome, as if to let her know that this applied to her as well, "Is this sense of ease more important to you than the joy of doing something you were sure would go well?" Tears slid down Kaori's face, and Kagome's eyes were suspiciously watery. "Do you have a wish?" Kaori nodded, "It has a price. Are you willing to pay it?" Again, a nodd. "Very well." Yuuko took Kaori's face in her hands before continuing "Your wish will be granted. What is your wish?" The air started vibrating again, so much that Kagome almost thought that she could hear a ringing through the air.

"I want to change!" Kaori begged. The ringing got louder, then abruptly stopped all together. Kaori got to her feet slowly, but confidently, before looking around. Fortunately, not many people were in the café and the strange event went unnoticed, thus dodging a great many awkward questions. "I'll go back and get another pot of tea for you. Would you like to order anything, ma'am?" She added politely. Yuuko smiled, and pulled up a chair.

"I'll take some of your cherry blossom tea. I've heard good things!" Kaori responded with the same.

"Of course! It'll be right out!"

- — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

Two days later, Kagome found herself laughing hysterically at Doumeki's story from the day before as he walked her to the subway station from a late archery practice.

"You're joking." She managed through a fit of the giggles, "Not just one of them, but _both?_ I mean, I knew Hikari liked you, but Kaori too? Poor you! And to think, they both confessed on the same day!"

"Within the same hour." He muttered darkly. "It was awful. I felt bad enough about turning them down, but so close together? I felt like a jerk." Kagome looked away.

"You're not." She told him quietly, "A jerk, I mean." Doumeki turned to look at her, a slight smile on his face.

"Thanks." Kagome answering smile was wider.

"Any time." Doumeki wondered if she had any clue that he was having problems with focusing on anything else. He did not understand why exactly the situation with the twins had resonated so strongly with Kagome, but he _did _know that she had been out of sorts ever since the incident with Kaori spontaneously bleeding in the cinema. Hopefully, her mirth was a sign that she was getting back to normal. Brushing his side with his school bag reminded him that he had another task he needed to complete, one that might, he hoped, help get some of the left over shadows out of her eyes.

"Hey, Kagome. Hold out your hands, and close your eyes." He instructed firmly. Kagome looked at him as though he were mildly insane.

"What?" He looked away, scowling slightly.

"Look, it's White Day, and I didn't get your gift wrapped in time, so you'll just have to live with this. Hands out, eyes shut." Laughing, Kagome did so. Doumeki reached into his bag studying his offering carefully before placing it into Kagome's arms. He had questioned Watanuki and Himawari about Kagome's preferences, trying to figure out something that Kagome would like without coming out and saying that he wanted to go out with her. They better have been right. He had no desire to be wrong, not in this case. "Ok, you can open them." When she did, Doumeki was rewarded with a squeal of delight at the stuffed fox with a white ribbon tied around his neck in her arms.

"Awww... it's adorable! I love foxes. Thank you Doumeki-senpai!" Doumeki had to turn away so she didn't notice the blush starting to cover his face.

"Shizuka." He told her, "I call you by your given name, you can do the same." He glanced over at her to see how she took this direction. Her face was currently going redder than the fox in which she was trying to hide it.

"Oh. Okay... Shizuka-senpai." Doumeki fought down the urge to grin broadly as they walked the rest of the way to Kagome's subway stop. This walk had proved amazingly productive. Best of all, he would not be forced to destroy Watanuki for being incorrect in regards to Kagome's fondness for foxes. After all, the boy _was _one of his best friends, and it would be a shame to lose his primary source of entertainment.

- — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

First of all, let me say that I am so, so, so, so, _so_ very sorry that this took forever and three days to get out. I never meant for it to be so, but first came summer job as a camp counselor, then came going back to college, then came college, and with it rush week, and this chapter got shoved to the sidelines. It didn't help any that I _despise _this story arc, and it defied my ability to put in Kagome. I will say that once I realized how the fact driven home by this arc, namely the ability of our words to negatively affect those closest to us, I _did _manage to find the connection I needed to make it work. All the same, this was probably the chapter that has varied the most from the original arc set forth in _XxxHoLiC_ thus far, therefore offering a new kettle of fish and challenges.

To my old readers who have stuck around this long to wait for it, I hope this chapter makes up for the wait! And to those of you who like the growing Kagome/Doumeki tension, I hope this chapter offered you many, many fun squealing moments. I know it offered me a few!


	11. Chapter Ten: Of Rainfalls and Ribbon

Once again, let it be established that no, I do _not _own _InuYasha: A Feudal Fairy Tale_, or _XxxHoLiC_. I am a college student. I don't speak Japanese. I can't draw to save my life. All of these things contribute to my lack of ownership. Accept it now and move on with your lives.

Yuuko's shop was currently experiencing a state of temper tantrum. "How can Syaoran and his group _not_ give me something for White Day?" Yuuko screeched, making Kagome want to cover her ears. "I know time flows differently in other dimensions, but I've been waiting patiently for _two whole months!_ But still, but still! They haven't even dropped me a line!" She pouted to Mokona, who seemed to be in whole hearted agreement. Kagome shook her head as she watched her employer continue to pout about not receiving her presents from other worlds, and muttering darkly about presents needing to be three times the amount given.

"Cheer up, Yuuko, if there's anything you're hungry for, I'll make it for you!" Watanuki said cheerily. Kagome nearly laughed at the suddenly evil smile on Yuuko's face. The older woman was going to take full advantage of Watanuki's lack of diligence.

"I want Sokisoba!" She declared.

Watanuki's face turned red with anger and he screamed "THAT DOESN'T HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH WHITE DAY!"

Kagome shook her head, before reaching back to adjust the ribbon she had recently taken to using to hold back half her hair from her face. She made a mental note to get her hair cut for the millionth time that week. "You didn't specify, Watanuki-senpai. It's fair game." Her co-worker glared at her before stalking off to the kitchen to make the demanded dish. Kagome shook her head, and continued neatening up the back room where the group tended to lounge while waiting for customers. Glancing out the window at the rain pouring down in sheets, she sighed unhappily. Once again, she was going to get soaked while trying to get to her subway, even with a raincoat and umbrella. "I know it's time for the rainy season to start so there isn't very much we can do about the rain, but this seems just a trifle extreme." She murmured to herself.

"This rain..." Kagome jumped slightly, caught by surprise at Yuuko's sudden presence next to her, "Is less about the rainy season and more about..."

"The tea is ready!" Watanuki interrupted, bringing in a teapot and three cups on a trey.

"Yaaay!" Yuuko squealed, diving for one of the cups as Kagome laughed, glancing out at the rain one more time before turning to the tea scene in front of her.

It wasn't long before Yuuko decided she wanted plum wine, which, of course, there was none. Thus Kagome and Watanuki were sent out into the downpour to fetch some. They were _not_ pleased with this development. The liquor store might not have been very far away, but when it was raining _this _hard, frankly, _anywhere_ was too far for pleasure.

"At this rate, my laundry will _never_ get dry." Watanuki muttered darkly, "And I wanted to air out my futon tonight!"

"Heh," Kagome snorted, "I'm thinking _that_ won't happen for a good long while. The rain doesn't show any signs of stopping in the near future."

"Awww man," Watanuki groaned, "I wish it would stop raining!" A bright blue umbrella came crashing down on Watanuki's skull. Kagome whirled, snatching the sharpened pencil that she used to channel her purifying power out of her pocket. The wielder of the umbrella was a girl with dark red hair curled in two pigtails. Her black dress and gloves spoke of elegance, and her aura and slightly shimmering appearance spoke of being a spirit rather than a human being. Kagome was understandably wary.

The spirit swung her umbrella back over her shoulder. "You _deserved _that!" She cried. "If there was no rain, there would be no rice in the fields, and then _where_ would you be?"

"_Excuse_ me?" Watanuki yelled. Kagome recognized the danger signs of an eminent foray into psychotic rant mode, and moved to head it off.

"I think what Watanuki-senpai means to say is that he's a little curious as to why you're here and walloping him over the head with an umbrella, Miss...?" Kagome trailed off, looking at the spirit expectantly.

The spirit girl sniffed arrogantly. "Hm! _I_ am an Ame-Warashi, miko. And _he_ should feel

fortunate that I am deigning to offer him my attention." She glared at the boy disdainfully before continuing in slightly pained tones, "What does that girl see in him, anyway?"

"Excuse me?" Watanuki asked again, in somewhat more polite tones, "I have no idea what you're talking about..."

_That _snapped the Ame-Warashi back to attention. "Rejoice, Watanuki Kimihiro! I have something _good _for you!" She pointed at him with her umbrella, resulting in an even more confused state from Watanuki. Kagome decided to take pity on him before the rain spirit wound up impaling him on the umbrella.

"Let's get back to Yuuko-san's. I'm sure she can help you with whatever, Ame-Warashi." She suggested brightly.

The Ame-Warashi considered her for a moment before accepting. "Yes. That _would_ be pleasant. And perhaps she will know what to do with... _that_." She gestured at Watanuki with her umbrella. Kagome snickered, leading the way back to the shop.

Yuuko was delighted at the visitor (or perhaps it was just the plum wine) and immediately offered her a seat on a draining board.

"To prevent water damage," she explained to the miffed Ame-Warashi.

"Oh. Yes, I see." The rain-maker agreed, mollified.

"You have some business with our Watanuki?" Yuuko continued expectantly.

"There's something I want him to do!" The Ame-Warashi announced imperially.

"And it's something only our Watanuki can do?" Yuuko clarified.

"That's right."

"Then he'll do it." Yuuko answered calmly.

"She could have _asked_ me!" Watanuki muttered darkly to Kagome from their eavesdropping position behind the door to the room.

"Shh!" Kagome hissed and glared at him.

"Of course, there _is _a price to be paid." Yuuko reminded the Ame-Warashi.

"How much?" The Ame-Warashi asked, unabashed.

"A value equal to the wish, of course." Yuuko answered calmly.

"If I'm the one who'll be doing the work, why's _she _the one doing the bargaining?" Watanuki mumbled to Kagome.

"Because it's Yuuko's store," Kagome hissed, "Now hush!"

"Fine, I'll pay it! I'm an Ame-Warashi! If word got out that I was stingy, I'd become a laughing stock in my world."

"Then... he's all yours!" Yuuko informed her cheerfully.

"And now it's all _my _responsibility!" Watanuki cried, revealing their hiding place. It was all Kagome could do to avoid covering her eyes with her hand.

"Watanuki-senpai..."

"You'll need to go see Doumeki first. _Both _of you." Yuuko added, "He'll have a part to play in this as well, I'm sure."

Kagome shook her head. "Yuuko-san, why haven't you just gone ahead and put Shizuka-senpai on the pay roll yet?" She asked plaintively.

Yuuko's eyebrows rose "_Shizuka_-senpai, Kagome-chan?" She asked archly, as Watanuki began muttering darkly about arrogant bastards who told kouhai to call them by their given names.

Kagome flushed, embarrassed in spite of herself. Yuuko had not yet heard her call Doumeki by his given name, unlike Watanuki. "Yes, Yuuko-san. Shizuka-senpai told me to call him that on White Day, since he's always called me by _my_ first name."

A slightly evil smirk curled Yuuko's lips. "Oh really? Was _that_ what he told you? How very... interesting." Kagome shivered. She did _not _like that smirk.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" The Ame-Warashi snapped, "Let's get _going_ already!" With twin sighs of resentment, Kagome and Watanuki fetched their umbrellas.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

"So. You came crying to me." Doumeki observed bluntly after Watanuki explained the situation.

"I'M NOT CRYING! WE'VE BEEN WALKING AROUND IN THE RAIN FOR AN HOUR! YOUR GARDEN IS OBSCENELY LARGE! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MANY HOUSES YOU COULD PUT BACK HERE?"

"I think what Watanuki-senpai is _trying_ to say," Kagome interjected helpfully, "Is that Yuuko-san told us we needed to get you. Oh, and she once again dodged the question about putting you on the pay roll, just so you know."

Doumeki smirked. "I figured she would. So. Who's your friend?"

"She's an Ame-Warashi." Kagome answered. It was then that the Ame-Warashi chose to interject her two cents.

She went right up to Doumeki and sniffed, ignoring his obvious discomfort, before exclaiming gleefully. "A refreshing scent! That's so rare nowadays! Both you, _and_ Yuuko's girl!" Kagome smiled weakly, noticeably disturbed.

Doumeki frowned. "Another spirit?"

"Weeeeell..."

"Don't place me in the same category as normal spirits!" The Ame-Warashi snarled, furling her umbrella and taking it in both hands and firmly whacking both Doumeki and Watanuki in the back of the head, "Here's a combo punishment!"

"HEY! Don't put me in a combo with him!" Watanuki shrieked.

"_Oww._" Muttered Doumeki, running his hand over the back of his head.

"You children are so rude!" The Ame-Warashi hissed, but brightened quickly. "But with _that, _and _that,_" She gestured first to Watanuki, then to Doumeki, "We may be successful!"

"Why did I have to get sucked into this again?" Watanuki asked.

Kagome shrugged, "Hey, you're the one in debt. Weirdness comes with the territory."

"So," The Ame-Warashi continued onwards, "You two are each going to need something that someone dear to at least _one_ of you keeps close." Stars lit up behind Watanuki's eyes.

"We could ask Himawari for something!" He offered dreamily.

Kagome shuddered at the very thought of using something so exposed to that warped aura. "Or you could just ask me, since I'm _right here_ and all." She offered hastily.

Doumeki nodded in agreement, having picked up on Kagome's discomfort at the idea of asking Himawari. "Right, that would work just as well, and take a lot less time. So. Got anything that you keep close, Kagome?"

She pursed her lips for a moment before an idea came to her and she brightened. "My hair ribbon, of course. It's been in close contact with me for the past few weeks. Will that be enough?" She asked the Ame-Warashi

"Mmmhmm! So now we have that and that, and this!" She gestured towards the boys and Kagome's hair ribbon. "So, come along!" She commanded, and began to march away from the shrine. The teenagers followed.

"Bossy little thing, isn't she?" Doumeki murmured to Kagome, who giggled.

"You have _no _idea." She answered.

"I think I do." He told her wryly. "Anyway, so tell me, did the reason why you didn't want to get the token from Himawari have to do with that warped aura you were telling me about?"

Kagome shivered "Absolutely. After seeing what it did to the casing on the Monkey's Paw? Let's just say that I didn't feel like taking any chances."

"Good plan." Doumeki agreed fervently, refocusing on Watanuki and the Ame-Warashi to come to an abrupt halt in front of several hydrangea bushes near the local park.

"So." The Ame-Warashi declared, "I need you to go on a mission. I wanted to try a rescue on my own, but it was impossible. I couldn't even get close." Her expression grew troubled, before turning into a look of determination. "But _you_ can. So. Please help." She asked before walking away.

Watanuki and Doumeki looked slightly troubled. "I can only _see_ weird things," Watanuki pointed out, "I can't _do_ anything about them!"

"The you should have refused." Doumeki replied bluntly.

"YOU DON'T KNOW HOW SCARY YUUKO WOULD BE IF I TRIED THAT!" Watanuki yelled back, then settled, looking gloomy. "Besides, you don't know how desperate the eyes of the Ame-Warashi looked..."

"Then you have to do it." Doumeki said bluntly.

"I KNOW THAT, BUT A GUY CAN HAVE APPREHENSIONS, CAN'T HE!"

Kagome shook her head. "Don't worry, Watanuki, you'll be just fine. So, let's take a look at these hydrangeas, shall we? They're _enormous_!"

"Yeah, and they're _really_ red. Normally they're more of a pink shade, like the ones at my family's shrine." Doumeki agreed. "I've never seen hydrangeas so red before..."

"There's nothing else here. What am I supposed to do?" Suddenly, both he and Kagome shuddered.

"What happened?" Doumeki demanded.

"Nothing... I just got the chills." Watanuki whispered, approaching the hydrangeas once again.

"Those hydrangeas..." Kagome murmured, stepping away from them, towards Doumeki. "I don't like them, Shizuka-senpai. They're... they're polluted, somehow."

"That's not a good sign." Doumeki said.

Kagome shook her head. "No. It really isn't."

Suddenly, one of the blossoms reached out and twined around Watanuki's ankle. "What?" The boy called out in fear and incredulity.

"Does it have you by the leg?" Doumeki asked, surprised in spite of himself.

"If you grab me like that, your petals will just get torn off," Watanuki reprimanded the plant gently, before gasping "Whoa! The flowers at the bottom are even _redder_!" Kagome shivered, and Doumeki put a comforting hand upon her shoulder... as black tendrils came up from the ground and swallowed Watanuki whole. She gasped. Through the haze of the black mist, she could see Watanuki laying on his back, on hand outstretched, looking as though it might sink into the dirt at any moment.

"Watanuki-senpai!"

"Here, let me." Doumeki knelt down next to the entranced form of Watanuki, Kagome's hair ribbon in hand, letting one end trail to the ground next to him. He observed carefully for a moment before taking the trailing end of the ribbon and wrapping it around the closer of Watanuki's hands. He turned to Kagome, and explained. "Wherever he is, I think I'm supposed to be his guide back." He paused, then corrected himself. "Actually, _you're_ his guide back. It's your hair ribbon, after all. I'm the anchor for it though, so I need to stay here. You can leave whenever. Get out of the rain before you catch cold, and all that."

Kagome shook her head violently, taking a seat next to Doumeki. "No way! I'm not one to leave her friends when something bad is happening. Besides, _I _have an umbrella. You don't. At the very least, I can share until he comes back." Her face burned at the thought of sharing an umbrella with Doumeki, the boy she was pretty sure that she liked, for however long it took for Watanuki to come around. She seriously hoped he hadn't noticed.

"Thanks, Kagome." He said, voice soft.

She smiled at him. "Any time, Shizuka-senpai!" The two settled down to wait, their attention focused on the boy lying prone infront of them, and bringing him home.

Their vigil over Watanuki was long, and relatively dull. Neither wanted to talk, primarily because they were worried how not Doumeki not focusing his full attention on Watanuki would result if he needed help getting back, but both drew strength and comfort from the other's presence. Somewhere around the six hour mark, Kagome started to doze off with her head resting against Doumeki's shoulder. Before too much longer, she was out like a light. Doumeki studied her face for as long as he dared, before forcing himself to ignore the warm figure who was now cuddling against his side in favor of his friend lying on the ground. Not that he _minded _Kagome cuddling up to him, far from it! But he _did _have to admit that he wished it was at a time when he didn't need to focus on keeping Watanuki alive and he could instead pay attention to the sensations that her actions offered. He would make Watanuki pay for making him miss out, he decided. It would be entertaining, and improve his sure to be bad temperament the next day. His lips curled. Yes, Watanuki would be in for it.

Finally, ten hours after his vigil started, Watanuki's hand dug into the dirt. Gently, Doumeki shook Kagome into wakefulness, eyes locked on his friend's form and position.

"Doumeki? Huh, what?" Kagome asked sleepily.

"He moved." He answered shortly. Her eyelids shot up, and she straightened, eyes going to Watanuki's hand... just as it pulled free from the earth holding the hand of a child's skeleton. Watanuki's eyes snapped open, and he sat up before turning to smile sadly at the skeleton hand.

"See?" He told the hand, "No one's here to say anything bad about you. You were brave to be alone for so long." Suddenly, he noticed the ribbon wrapped around his other hand, whirling to find its source. "Doumeki? Kagome?" He asked, confused, before blinking "Why's it so dark out here?"

Doumeki rolled his eyes, glowering. "Forget that, I'm tired.!" Kagome nodded in slightly groggy agreement.

"I'm better off than you are, but I'm tired too. Sorry for using you as a pillow without permission."

"Eh, it's fine. Don't worry about it."

"Huh? What's so tiring?" Watanuki asked in confusion.

"They've been sitting in vigil in the rain for ten hours." The trio spun hastily to see Yuuko standing behind them with her own umbrella. "Anyone would get tired!"

Watanuki was the first to recover. "TEN HOURS?"

"Yuuko-san, what are you doing here?" Kagome asked, startled.

"I've come to fetch you, of course. Kagome, I called your mother and let her know you wouldn't be making it home tonight. You can use the spare the room at the shop."

"Thank you, Yuuko-san." Kagome said, relieved that she wouldn't have to try to navigate the subway while exhausted. "I'm going to go now. Good night, Watanuki-senpai, Shizuka-"

"I'll walk you back to the shop. It's not very far out of my way, and you shouldn't be walking around at night by yourself." Doumeki offered quickly. Kagome shook her head with a wry smile.

"I can take care of myself, you know." She told him dryly. "But I'll take you up on the offer. I'm probably too tired to think straight at the moment."

"An excellent observation!" Yuuko said smugly. "Off you two go!"

"We can make a stop by my shrine first, call the police to let them know about the body." Doumeki added, as he helped Kagome to her feet.

"Probably a good idea," she agreed, yawning. "Hopefully, I can stay awake long enough to get back to the shop."

"We'll manage." He reassured her, taking her hand and leading her into the night.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

Three hours later, Kagome guided Doumeki back to Yuuko's shop, armed with the information provided to them by the police about the corpse, and completely exhausted.

"So, this is what the shop looks like." Doumeki observed. "Nice place she's got here."

"Yep." Kagome agreed, voice husky, and very obviously not fully awake. Doumeki grinned as he helped her into the store.

"We got a call from the police." He said quietly as they entered, interrupting Yuuko and Watanuki's conversation, "The clothes on the body matched those of a little girl who went missing last year."

"I see." Yuuko said grimly. "We'll let the police solve the details of the case. The important thing is that the body can be returned to those who loved her, and she can be sent to the _real_ far shore."

"Yeah..." Kagome agreed, resting her head against Doumeki's shoulder, eyes barely open. Watanuki stared at Doumeki for a long moment, before taking a deep breath, and saying

"Doumeki! Tha-a-a... Gah! I can't do it!"

"I thought you might be tired, so I came to see you. But nothing seems to tire out you children." The Ame-Warashi's voice startled everyone. It even convinced Kagome's eyelids to lever upwards a little. "Thank you for coming to the rescue!"

"I'm just glad that someone was able to find that little girl and help her." Watanuki said.

"Huh?" The Ame-Warashi looked confused.

"I'm just saying it's good in the end that the little girl didn't have to suffer a worse fate."

The Ame-Warashi's expression said clearly that she thought Watanuki was insane. "Why would I care in the slightest about rescuing some human?"

"Ehhhh?" Watanuki shrieked.

"The ones I wanted you to rescue were the hydrangeas! They're an essence related to and dependant on those who control the rain. Nowadays it's more and more difficult to find a perfect pure essence like those children are! But the blood from that corpse was turning them red. The corruption of a corpse is like poison to essence."

"Th-then that little girl was..." Watanuki stammered in shock.

"Nothing to do with me." The Ame-Warashi informed him, scorn filling her voice. "Humans do nothing to help the precious things of this world, so why should the precious things have to help some human?" At Watanuki's look of stunned horror, the Ame-Warashi shook her head in disgust. "I really have _no _idea what that girl sees in you!" She muttered darkly before turning to Yuuko, "You'll get your payment in a few days."

"Yes, that's fine." Yuuko said serenely.

The Ame-Warashi began to dissolve into the rain, before she paused, and turned back to Watanuki. "One last thing, you'd _better _not forget your White Day duties!" she hissed, before letting the rain take her away completely.

"Ehhhh?"

"I can't forgive _anyone_ who forgets about White Day." Yuuko told him sternly.

"Huh? I can't remember anyone giving me chocolate... well, besides Kagome-chan."

"And you haven't given _me_ anything for White Day." Kagome muttered, half asleep. "And she's probably talking about the Zashiki-Warashi, right Yuuko-san?"

Yuuko beamed. "That's right, Kagome-chan!"

"THAT COUNTS AS BEING GIVEN VALENTINE'S DAY CHOCOLATE!" Watanuki shrieked. Doumeki smirked.

"Yep. You might want to get on that, Watanuki. And the gift for Kagome. Just saying." He then turned to Yuuko. "Where's that guest room? I'm going to help her get to her futon. She's completely out of it."

Yuuko smiled mysteriously and waved to a nearby door. "Down that hall, first door on the left. The futon is already laid out for her."

"Great." Carefully, Doumeki guided her through the door and hallway, before entering a small, but serviceable, guestroom. Kagome saw the futon, and her face brightened immediately.

"Sleep now?" She asked.

Doumeki couldn't help but laugh at her expression. "Yeah, go to sleep. Have nice dreams, and all that." Kagome was already crawling into the futon as he answered her.

"You too." She told him before her eyes drifted shut, and she was off into dreamland.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

So, happy early Valentine's Day! I hope you enjoyed it. Thanks for putting up with a ridiculously long wait again, and for all the reviews. And now, I'm going to be like Kagome and crash, because I wanted to get this finished. Russian is going to be _such _fun in about... six hours.


	12. Chapter Eleven: Of Anger and Pipe Foxes

So. As my name is not Rumiko Takahashi, nor one of the many names associated with CLAMP, I can assure you that I in no way have any claim to the titles _InuYasha: a Feudal Fairytale_ or _XxxHoLiC_. Believe me.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

"The rain is clearing up!" Watanuki cheered as he and Kagome hung sheets up to dry in the sunlight. "I guess there really was a relationship between all the rain and the Ame-Warashi, right Kagome-chan?"

Kagome smiled at his enthusiasm. "Never doubt the words of an angry spirit- they tend to be almost neurotically truthful." She told him dryly as she smoothed out some wrinkles in an attempt to keep the sheets from creasing.

"Oh. That makes sense I- YEAAAAAAA! YUUKO!" Watanuki's scream diverted Kagome's attention from her task. The girl blinked down at her boss, who was lying sprawled out along the porch, writing out the kanji for HOT with her lemonade on the planks.

"Ummmm... Yuuko-san?" She asked hesitantly, "Would you like Watanuki-senpai and me to get something for you?"

The older woman sat up and brightened immediately. "Yes, Kagome-chan! That would be lovely!"

Which was how she and Watanuki had been convinced into hauling out a kiddie pool, inflating it, filling the thing with water, and grabbing a slightly ridiculous parasol out of storage. Now Yuuko was seated in cold water, parasol in hand to keep the sun off of her body, while Maru and Moro played with the water hoses nearby. A look of rapture crossed her face. "Ahhhh! This is bringing me back to life!" She glanced over her shoulder to where Kagome sat slumped against the wall and Watanuki lay panting heavily. "What's wrong, you two?"

"They're not cheerful. They're not cheerful." Maru and Moro chanted mournfully.

"YOU ORDER ME TO INFLATE A KIDDIE POOL, BUT YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE A HANDPUMP!" Watanuki shrieked, "ANY NORMAL PERSON WOULD LOOK LIKE ME!"

"Inflating the pool without an air pump _was_ a little exhausting," Kagome agreed, "But as I didn't do most of that part, that's not really my problem. I'm just a little overheated."

"Ahhh, yes, yes. The pool is just the thing for summer! This one even has cute characters on it!" A slightly evil smirk crossed her face, "And because Watanuki worked _soo_ hard, I'll give him a peep of something of mine that's _really_ nice!"

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Watanuki yelped in response. Kagome snickered at Yuuko's suddenly angelic expression as she reached into a drawer of a nearby table and removed a small vividly blue cylindrical vial with silver filigree in a pattern of flowers. The boy blinked, surprised. "It's a pipe, right? I didn't know you smoked pipes, Yuuko."

Kagome's eyes narrowed and tilted to the side as she inspected the pipe. "It's a pipe, alright," She confirmed, "But it's not filled with tobacco."

"Exactly, Kagome-chan!" Yuuko agreed, her eyes sparkling with glee as she uncapped the pipe.

"Eh?" Watanuki asked, leaning closer to inspect the furry thing revealed inside. "A brush?" He murmured, leaning forward to inspect it. In an instant, he was bowled over as a long, slender form streaked out of the pipe and flew over his shoulder to get to Kagome. "WAAAAH! IT MOVED!"

Meanwhile, the furry creature was winding its way around Kagome's neck and shoulders, pausing to look into her eyes before rubbing its head against her cheek. Kagome giggled, "That tickles," She told it gently, then to Yuuko, "It _feels_ like a fox," she said, puzzled, "But... not exactly. What is it, Yuuko-san?"

"It's a pipe fox spirit." Yuuko explained.

Watanuki stared at the scene in abject confusion. "Fox? Where do you get a fox from that?"

Yuuko shrugged, "It's tail looks like a fox's, doesn't it?"

"So does its face." Kagome agreed.

"Which end _is_ its face?" Watanuki muttered, shaking his head.

"It's so cute..." Kagome murmured, stroking the soft fur of its head. The pipe fox let out a purring rumble in response, nuzzling closer to her cheek. Kagome's eyes closed, remembering stroking Shippou's tail, and his similar response. Her face took on a trace of melancholy at the thought.

"It also has incredible spiritual powers." Yuuko informed them, "After all, it's a creature offered as payment by the Ame-Warashi." She glanced over her shoulder at Watanuki before adding, "By the way, Watanuki, do you have a White Day gift prepared for the Zashiki-Warashi? I'm willing to help you get it to her, if you do. After all, it will be hard to find her, being who she is..." She trailed off, looking hopefully at her part-timer.

"I do," Watanuki answered, eyes narrowing, "But if I asked you for help, you'd deduct it from my wages, wouldn't you?"

"How awful!" Yuuko cried, sounding outraged, "You act as if I'm some sort of miser!"

"I'll try to find her on my own." Watanuki answered, voice flat.

Kagome giggled. "I'm impressed by your conviction."

"Good boy! Good boy! Watanuki's a good boy!" Maru and Moro chanted, "He should get a gold star! He should get a gold star!"

"He's right!" Yuuko agreed cheerfully, "Such presents really should be given in person, don't you agree, Kagome?"

"Oh yes, of course!" Kagome agreed with a devious smile, "After all, what girl _wouldn't_ appreciate such appreciation?"

"_Do_ tell me," Yuuko continued, "Did Doumeki-kun offer such appreciation? I haven't seen your White Day present from him."

Kagome's face flushed. "Yes, he did. _On time._" She added with a glance over to Watanuki, "Unlike _some people_ who are well over a month behind by now."

Yuuko's eyes gleamed. "Well, Kagome-chan, what was it?"

The flush on Kagome's face deepened. "He got me a stuffed fox."

"EHHHHH?!" Watanuki shocked voice broke in, "Was _that_ why he wanted to know if there was something Himawari or I knew you preferred!? I never should have told him!"

Yuuko snickered. "So it seems he put some effort into your gift, Kagome-chan. You should be happy."

Kagome shrugged, "I guess so..." She murmured, turning her attention to coaxing the pipe fox from wrapping around her neck too tightly.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

"So, explain to me again, _how_ exactly is Watanuki planning on finding the Zashiki-Warashi on his own?" Doumeki asked Kagome drily as they cleaned the archery team's equipment shed. It was their turn to perform clean-up duty, and they were attempting to make quick work of the task, although it was obvious that several of their predecessors had deemed it unnecessary.

Kagome shook her head with a smile. "I have absolutely no idea. He doesn't know much about her, or Zashiki-Warashi in general, and I don't think it's occurred to him that he needs to do some serious research to find out. Last I spoke to him, he was muttering about hiking in the mountains."

Doumeki stared at her for a long moment. "Has he realized that he doesn't know exactly _which _mountains she lives in?"

Kagome shook her head with a fond smile. "I doubt it. He usually doesn't think about such things- he just doesn't want to add to his debt to Yuuko-san."

"Idiot." Doumeki muttered with equal affection, shaking his head.

"Of course he is," Kagome agreed, "But he wouldn't be our Watanuki if he suddenly started to be practical." Suddenly, her back went ramrod straight as she felt something ghost along her arm. "Shizuka-senpai, you didn't just touch my arm, did you?" She asked, doubtful.

"No, how could I? I have an armful of dirty shitagake. Smells like no one's bothered to clean them since the tournament your friend showed up to."

Kagome wrinkled her nose. "Uggh. We'll definitely need to wash them, then. Kami-sama, does _anyone_ else bother to actually clean during their rotation?" She shivered, feeling the same sensation, only this time around her shoulder. "And there it is _again_!" She said, huffing in irritation.

"There's _what_ again?" Doumeki asked, immediately wary.

"This strange feeling that _something_ is touching me." She explained, irritated. She pulled slightly on the collar of her uniform, and out popped the pipe fox's head. She stared at it for a long moment, then started to laugh. "It's you! Well, I guess that explains things."

Doumeki stared at the little creature, trying not to feel annoyed about the fact that the thing was touching _Kagome's skin_ so casually. He failed. "What is that?" He asked, his voice sounding a little sharper than usual, and he glared slightly at it.

"It's a pipe fox." Kagome explained, "It's what the Ame-Warashi paid with- KYAAH!" The sudden shriek was caused by the pipe fox's sudden dive back into her blouse. She could feel it quivering between her shoulder blades... at the one point she couldn't reach by herself. "Well, this is just great." She mumbled, her cheeks flaming, "Why'd it decide to do that?"

Doumeki's didn't seem to be in much better condition. "Probably because I was glaring at it." He said, "Can you grab it?"

Kagome shook her head, her face getting even redder, "Not where he's positioned himself. Ummmm... Maybe he'll move?"

He shook his head. "Doubtful, at least as long as I'm here. Errrr... would you like some help?" Both of them were completely red at this point.

"Oh... ok? Just try not to hurt him..." She turned her back to him as he set down the pile of shitagake.

"Right." Idly, Doumeki wondered if his face had ever been quite this red before. He rather doubted it. Then again, he'd never put a hand under the shirt of his best female friend, for whom he just so _happened_ to have more than typically friendly feelings, so he supposed that was to be expected. After a moment's hesitation, he pulled the back of Kagome's uniform away from her skin, reached under the hem, and quickly located the pipe fox wrapped into a ball against her upper back. Following her directions, he gently took hold of it and slid it out from under her shirt. "There." He said, inspecting it closely. "So, this is a pipe fox."

"You've heard of them?" Kagome asked, sounding just a little too interested.

Doumeki didn't blame her. He knew a safe topic when he saw one, and he was more than happy to take advantage of this one. "My grandfather talked about them a little," He explained, "Said they were one type of magical creature." He turned to the pipe fox, who was shaking in his palm. "Hey, you. I'm not going to hurt you, and I didn't mean to scare you. So stop shaking." The pipe fox stopped, its little head peering at him, looking for all the world as if it was inspecting him, before seeming to come to a conclusion. It settled back into his hand without another complaint.

Kagome smiled, "Awww... I think it's decided that it likes you." She cooed, "Yuuko-san said that they had incredible spiritual powers..." She grinned, "It's a good thing that it's latched onto me, and not Watanuki."

Doumeki raised an eyebrow. "Really? And why is that?"

His response was a slightly evil light in her eyes, "Because while Yuuko will probably find it adorable that this little guy's attached himself to me, she'd make Watanuki pay a 'usage fee' or something if it had followed him. Can you imagine the shrieks of outrage if she did?" She reached out to stroke the pipe fox's fur again. The little creature perked up, and raced up her arm to wrap around her shoulders and rub its head against her nose.

Doumeki grinned. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say it was cuddling up." He watched the pipe fox for a moment, before shaking his head, "No, actually, I _do_ know better, and I'm_ still_ saying that it's cuddling up. I think it likes you. Good thing you like foxes."

Kagome laughed, although Doumeki thought that it sounded a little more sad than usual. "I guess so. I like foxes, and for the most part, they like me. At least, the spiritually aware ones do. I haven't met any of the other type, so I couldn't say." Suddenly, the pipe fox stopped mid-nuzzle, and its head zoomed over to the open window of the shed. Kagome frowned. "What is it, little one?" Something drifted in on the breeze, landing into her outstretched hand. "A feather?" She murmured, bringing it closer to her face, then she frowned "That's odd..."

"What is?" Doumeki asked, looking over her shoulder. "It's a feather."

Kagome shook her head, "There's more to it than that." She trailed off, before asking "Do you feel anything... off about it?"

Doumeki's eyes narrowed with concentration as he stared at the feather. Finally he nodded slowly. "It's not _off_, exactly... just a really vague feeling that it's not a normal feather. I don't think I would have picked up on it if I hadn't tried."

"Shizuka-senpai's abilities are getting stronger." She said with a smile, "Probably because you're hanging out with Watanuki-senpai and me so often. You're using them more now, and practice _does_ make perfect, after all."

He nodded. "Makes sense. Where is this from, then? Should we be worried?"

"I... I don't know." She said with a shake of her head, "There's a gold aura around it, which means that it's been exposed to _some_ sort of extended human contact. It doesn't _seem _dangerous, at least, not to us. To its owner... that's a different question, one I don't know the answer to." She looked out the window, eyes narrowed. "Fukumura-san!" She whispered, before turning to Doumeki. "The girl with short curly hair, walking away from the school- do you notice anything unusual about her?"

Doumeki leaned over her shoulder to peer out the window, before shaking his head. "Nope. I've got nothing. I'm guessing that you do?"

Kagome nodded. "She has small white wings growing out of her shoulder blades. They're still small, but I'm guessing that since you can't see them, it's a _big_ problem."

"Manifestation of her soul?" He asked.

"That's my guess." She agreed, her face looking grim. "I'll tell Yuuko-san about it tonight at work. In the meantime," she wrinkled her nose at the pile of shitagake. "Let's go get these in the wash. They really _are_ disgusting."

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

Kagome opened the door to the shop to a Watanuki rant. "...Maybe Himawari-chan will wear them! Cute! That would be so cute!" He crowed, before sobering for a moment, "But wouldn't that be against the rules? Against uniform policy, or something, probably, although I don't think there's a specific rule that says 'students may not wear wings' in the handbook..."

"You'd better _hope_ Himawari-chan doesn't start wearing those wings, Watanuki-senpai." She told him bluntly, before turning to Yuuko, "Doumeki and I saw Fukumura-san, one of the girls in my class, wearing them. Or rather, _I _saw them. Doumeki could see one of the feathers that had floated away on the breeze, and even noticed that there was something off about it when he focused, but he couldn't see the wings themselves."

Yuuko nodded, eyes narrowed. "Do you still have the feather, Kagome-chan?"

"Of course," Kagome reached into her pocket and handed it over to Yuuko, "We didn't have a clue what it meant, but we figured that you might."

"I do." Yuuko's face was dark. Her expression wasn't _angry_, exactly, but it certainly wasn't happy, either. "Are you particularly bent on keeping this?" Wordlessly, Kagome shook her head. She sensed Yuuko's power gathering around the feather, although she was still startled when it burst into flames. "Be very careful," Yuuko's voice was serious, more so than Kagome had ever heard it. "Being 'game' is very dangerous."

Kagome couldn't help shivering slightly.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

Art class, Kagome decided as she pushed her sweaty hair off her shoulder for the twentieth time that afternoon, was a horrible class. Never mind that she was usually at least _somewhat_ fond of the subject. She had a good eye for detail, even if her fingers weren't skilled enough to sketch anything _too_ brilliant. They had done a unit on calligraphy a few months ago, and she'd done exceptionally well there. She'd chalked it up as being part of a traditional shrine family, but it went deeper than that. After all, miko and houshi made their own sutras, and someone had to make all those charms for blessing that were so popular at shrines. Doumeki had also done rather well on that unit, the art teacher had mentioned.

Still, sketching pictures of school grounds at the end of May was absolute _torture._ "So hot." She muttered.

"I _know_." One of her classmates agreed, blowing sweaty bangs out of her face, "This was nice in October, or March, but at the start of summer, I wish the art teacher would think of our misery."

Kagome nodded fervently. "Do you have a hair tie, or a ribbon I could borrow, Tsukino-san? I'm going to overheat unless I put my hair up."

"You're in luck." Tsukino replied, reaching into her pocket and pulling out a length of blue ribbon, "You don't need to give it back- it was a gift from my ex-boyfriend. I've only got it because I've been looking for a way to make a statement of just how little I care about him now. You wearing it should do the trick."

Kagome laughed as she took it and tied her hair into a ponytail. "Happy to help."

Tsukino grinned. "Thanks, Higurashi-san, I–" The conversation broke off to the sound of paper ripping violently. Both girls' heads whipped around towards Fukumura. "Nana-chan? W-what are you doing?" Tsukino asked hesitantly.

"I'm fed up with this!" Fukumura said angrily.

Kagome exchanged glances with Tsukino. Judging from the other girl's expression, this was _not_ normal behavior for Fukumura Nana. _It's those wings_, Kagome thought to herself, _It has to be. No wonder Yuuko-san was so adamant about us being careful!_ She shivered slightly. She would _definitely_ be passing along the warning to Shizuka-senpai. He should be on his guard as well.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

"Wings? Like the ones you told me about yesterday?" Doumeki asked as they walked to the archery practice area.

"Yes. It's Fukumura Nana-san, from class 1-A who has them."

"Did your other classmate see them?"

Kagome shook her head. "I didn't bother to ask. Tsukino-san definitely would have commented on them if she had seen them. So it was just me."

"I couldn't see them either." Doumeki said meditatively, "So, they're probably some kind of spirit. Or something spiritual, at any rate."

"Most likely." Kagome agreed with a frown, "The only question is what kind? Are they dangerous to her, or not? Can I get rid of them without her noticing?"

Doumeki shook his head. "I've got nothing. I can look through some of my grandfather's records, but that's–"

"You're in the way." Fukumura snapped from their left. Doumeki stopped mid-sentence, and both turned to look at the source of the angry statement. Neither of them moved and instead just stared at such blatant rudeness. Fukumura's fists clenched. "I _said_ you're in the way!"

Without a word, Kagome moved closer to Doumeki's side, and Fukumura stomped past them. "She was always such an easy going girl," Kagome murmured, "A lot of people really liked her because of it. Tsukino-san was completely shocked at how she behaved in art class."

"I'm guessing that it's not just because it's too hot out. It's probably because of those wings you're seeing."

"That would be my guess. There's..." She paused with a sigh as the pipe fox stuck its head up from inside her collar, "Something strange about those wings." She finished, before turning to Doumeki with a slightly exasperated smile. "I seem to have picked up a passenger again. Perhaps I should look into buying it from Yuuko-san, given how it seems to have attached itself to me."

Doumeki smirked. "It's an idea. But yeah, there's definitely something weird about those wings. What did Yuuko-san tell you about them again?"

"She saw the feather we found yesterday, and said 'Be very careful, being game is very dangerous.' That was _after_ she burned it to a crisp with her power." She explained, stroking the pipe fox.

"Game? What kind of game could she be talking about?" Doumeki asked, then shook his head, "No, it doesn't really matter, does it? She gave you a warning. So, follow it. I'll try to make sure Watanuki does too."

Kagome laughed. "I go out of my way to avoid trouble, especially when Yuuko talks like that. But Watanuki-senpai? We'll _both_ need to keep an eye on him."

Doumeki grinned. "Very true. Speaking of which..." He gestured towards the school gate, where Kagome easily spotted Watanuki. "Let's go talk with him." He cupped his hands around his mouth. "Oi! Watanuki! Wait up!"

Watanuki whirled, but stopped and waited for them. "What do _you_ want?" He demanded.

"Heard you got a warning from Yuuko-san." Doumeki said with a shrug. "Wanted to make sure that you weren't going to go sticking your neck out like she told you not to."

Watanuki glared at him. "WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM! WHAT I DO IS MY BUSINESS!"

Doumeki scowled. "If anything happened to you..."

"Your source of free lunch would dry up?" Watanuki snapped. Kagome winced. She knew the real reason Doumeki was so concerned. He didn't want anything to happen to his friend, but Watanuki didn't realize that his friend really could feel worried about his safety, probably because he himself couldn't see the danger.

"NO!" Doumeki yelled, sounding angry, then seemed to calm himself. His usual smirk came into place, although Kagome could tell it was just a little forced. "I wouldn't be able to have as many chances to laugh at an idiot in action." He dead panned.

"THAT'S EVEN WORSE!" Watanuki shrieked.

Kagome shook her head, smiling fondly. "Boys, are you finished playing now?" She teased, "Shizuka-senpai and I need to get to practice."

"Yeah, Kagome's right. You'll be at the festival tonight, right?" Doumeki asked, pausing a moment before adding, "Himawari'll be there."

"Himawari-chan!" Watanuki cried, going into a day dreamy state, "She'll be so cute dressed in a yukata! Of course I'll be there!"

"Then we'll see you there." Kagome said with a smile, "Let's go, Shizuka-senpai, before the captain gives us cleaning duty again as a punishment."

"You said it. Later, Watanuki!" Doumeki added, nodding at the other boy before they turned and walked away.

Kagome sighed once they were out of earshot. "He really is clueless sometimes, isn't he?"

Doumeki laughed. "Yeah, he is." He paused for a moment, then added, "So, what are you doing about the festival? If I remember correctly, you don't have a yukata, or you would've worn it to the ghost story thing."

"I'm going to be doing what I usually do for festivals," she explained with a grin, "I've been loaned out to the shrine that's hosting it to help out, because they don't have any daughters. Thus, I'm wearing my hakama and haori."

"So, you're being a shrine brat for the evening," Doumeki said with an easy grin, "Gotcha."

Kagome wrinkled her nose. "I'm doing a friend of my grandfather a favor. Besides, I seem to recall a certain someone else being a shrine brat."

"True." He conceded, "But you've seen me being a shrine brat. It'll be nice to see _you_ at it for a change."

"Well, you'll definitely get the chance tonight. I'll have to do a ceremonial dance a little before midnight. Easy enough when you've been doing so every year since fourth grade, but it's pretty." Kagome said, with a slight blush.

"Looking forward to it." He assured her as they entered the dojo. "Definitely looking forward to it."

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

As she was actually participating in the festivities for the evening, Kagome was the first of the friends to arrive at the shrine gate. She settled against one of the posts with a sigh. Based on past experiences with Eri, Yuka, and Ayumi, she was in for a long wait.

"Hey. So, this is what you look like dressed like a miko. Looks good." Kagome jumped nearly a foot off the ground with a shriek. Doumeki laughed.

"Don't _do _that!" Kagome scolded, catching her breath, "I don't like it when people sneak up on me. Bad memories." Her eyes narrowed, taking in the expression on his face, "You're going to start sneaking up on me more often now, aren't you?"

"Probably." He agreed with a smirk.

"Hi, everyone!" Himawari hurried to join them with a sunny smile on her face, "Wow, Kagome-chan, I didn't realize you would be acting as a miko at the festival!"

Kagome shrugged. "The family here doesn't have a daughter, and the head priest is an old friend of my grandfather. I've been conscripted to help out every year since I was in fourth grade."

"Really? It must be hard to be the daughter of a shrine family!" Himawari said, sounding awed.

"Not really. You get used to it."

"Yeah." Doumeki seconded, "Being a shrine kid, you see festivals in a different way than everyone else."

"Oh, I see! It must be interesting!" Himawari chirped. Kagome and Doumeki just looked at each other, neither wanting to be the one to burst the cheerful girl's bubble by saying that for shrine brats, the word 'festival' usually meant 'at least a month, if not more, dedicated to making preparations, including at least a week spent in a massive cleaning of the shrine from top to bottom, followed by being put on display like a performing monkey'.

Fortunately, they were spared from this by the impromptu arrival of Watanuki. "I'm sorry!" The boy panted as he ran up to them, "Did I make you wait long?"

Himawari beamed at him. "Not at all! I just got here. We all wanted to get here a little early, that's all. It's Kagome-chan who's been waiting for a while."

Kagome shrugged. "I didn't get to the gate all that long ago- I was doing last minute run throughs."

"Let's go." Doumeki broke in abruptly, moving to stand with Kagome in the front of the group.

"Who elected _you_ leader, creep?"

Kagome had to stifle her giggles at Watanuki's muttering, and noticed a smirk on Doumeki's lips. "Someday," She murmured quietly, "You really _are _going to have to stop riling him up on purpose."

"Nah," Doumeki told her with a grin, "Then I'd be out of an entertainment source!"

"Watanuki-kun, do you like Night Festivals like this one?" Himawari asked brightly.

"I sure do!" Watanuki agreed, "But in places like this with large crowds, 'they' tend to come out, so I can't go to them very often." Kagome winced in sympathy.

"I'm guessing that 'they' are spirits?" Doumeki asked quietly.

Kagome nodded. "They're out full force in places like this. For Watanuki-senpai, who has innate power but not innate protections against them, festivals like this, especially ones at night, are probably nightmarish. He should have a much easier time of it tonight, though."

"Why do you say that?" Doumeki asked, curiosity in his voice.

Kagome beamed at him. "Because unlike Watanuki-senpai, you and I _do_ have innate protections, and we'll be warding off anything that comes towards our group."

"Stop it!" A voice shrieked.

"Tsukino-san?" Kagome murmured, and turned her head towards the source of the yell. Sure enough, it was Tsukino-san, accompanied by a girl Kagome didn't recognize and...

"Isn't that the girl? Fukumura-san, right?" Doumeki asked her quietly.

"Yes, that's her." Kagome affirmed.

"Kagome-chan? Doumeki-kun? What's going on?" Himawari asked, coming to stand next to them.

"Hey, isn't that the girl you and Yuuko were talking about yesterday?" Watanuki asked, "The one with..." He trailed off, glancing at Himawari.

"Yes," Kagome affirmed, staring at the scene playing out in front of her, "That's the girl."

"He's the one who bumped into me!" Fukumura snapped, clearly angry.

"And I apologized!" A young man snapped back.

"Was _that_ an apology?" She demanded.

"Cut it out!" Tsukino told her, "Let's just go. Come on, Nana-chan..."

"No!" Fukumura yelled, "Not until I get a proper apology!"

"You're not right in the head, you little..." The young man moved towards her, looking like he was about to slap her across the face. Kagome wouldn't have blamed him. Fukumura was being incredibly rude.

Fukumura beat him to the punch, quite literally, bringing the fan she was carrying down on his head with a resounding crack. The young man fell to his knees, his hands moving to cover what Kagome was certain would be a rather impressive lump. "_You're_ not right in the head." She corrected him coldly.

Kagome's eyes narrowed as she caught a good look at Fukumura's back, but it was Watanuki who commented. "The wings..." He whispered, "They've gotten bigger."

"That _can't _be a good thing." Kagome murmured.

Bystanders were surrounding the fallen man. "Hey, are you ok? Can you stand?"

"What did you just _do?!_" Tsukino hissed, taking a hold of Fukumura's arm.

"It makes me mad!" Fukumura stated bluntly. "He should apologize!"

"What is _wrong_ with you, girl?" A bystander asked angrily. The crowd around the group was getting larger, with more people joining the throng.

"What's happening?"

"Is there a fight?"

"What are you people doing?"

Tsukino started to look uneasy. "Let's get out of here." She said. Kagome could see her eyes darting around the crowd, looking for an escape.

"Why do _I_ have to be the one to run away?" Fukumura demanded. Evidently, Tsukino decided not to leave her a chance to argue. She grabbed Fukumura by the wrist and darted away, dragging the other girl behind her. Their companion quickly followed suit.

Kagome stared after them, eyes wide. "They got bigger." She murmured.

Doumeki turned to watch her. "The wings?"

"Mm." Kagome nodded, eyes still fixed on Fukumura's retreating form. Suddenly, the other girl looked over her shoulder, and locked eyes with Kagome. She couldn't help the shiver than ran down her spine. This was definitely _not_ a good thing.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

"So, those wings on her back have definitely been getting larger, then?" Doumeki asked Kagome the next day as the two of them sat together at lunch the next day. Watanuki and Himawari were running late; they'd mentioned that they had some sort of class duty that would run over into the beginning of lunch at the festival the night before.

"Yes. They grew right before my eyes during the fan debacle." She affirmed. "I think... I think she glared..."

"At who?" Doumeki demanded.

"At... at me." Kagome admitted.

Doumeki frowned. "I don't like this." He admitted, "Did your passenger hitch a ride today?"

Kagome nodded. "He's currently residing under my shirt. Again."

"Good."

"You were there last night." Kagome and Doumeki both turned their heads to see Fukumura standing less than two yards from them. Her eyes were locked onto Kagome.

"Yes?" Kagome offered tentatively, not liking the way the winged girl was focused on her.

"You glared at me!" Fukumura announced.

Kagome shook her head slowly. "Our eyes met, but I wouldn't call it a glare. At least, not on my part."

"Well, I would!" Fukumura snapped, "And it irritated me! Apologize!"

Kagome's jaw dropped. "I'm not going to apologize for something I didn't do." She said quietly.

"Apologize!" Fukumura demanded, taking a step forward.

Kagome shook her head. "As I said, I didn't glare at you. I see no reason to apologize for looking at you."

"I DON'T CARE! JUST APOLOGIZE!" Fukumura yelled, moving even closer to Kagome. "AND BE QUICK ABOUT IT!"

Doumeki's eyes narrowed, and he put an arm out in front of Kagome. She blinked, startled. Was Doumeki being... protective? "She doesn't have to." He told Fukumura coolly. "If she didn't do anything, she doesn't have to apologize. The real problem here is..."

"JUST SPIT OUT AN 'I'M SORRY'!" Fukumura shrieked, the wings on her back bristling with anger, and growing even larger.

"Your wings..." Kagome whispered, her eyes going wide.

"Shut _up_!" Fukumura raged, reaching into her pocket before slashing at her. Kagome felt a sharp sting along her cheekbone, and reached up a hand to touch her face. Her fingers came away bloody. She gasped, and looked at Fukumura's hand. Fukumura was carrying a box cutter. "You all just piss me off!" Fukumura yelled. "You get me so irritated!" Her wings were shaking now, showing just how very angry the girl was. "APOLOGIZE, APOLOGIZE!" She yelled, slashing towards Kagome with the box cutter. This time, Kagome was ready, and dodged out of reach.

Doumeki pushed forward, placing himself between Fukumura and Kagome, before reaching out to seize the box cutter. The blade cut into his palm, and Kagome could see blood seeping through his fingers. "Shizuka-senpai..." She whispered.

"_You're_ the one who should apologize." He told Fukumura sternly. "Kagome hasn't done anything to you, and you attacked her."

Fukumura started to shake, then fell abruptly to her knees. Her wings rose, and long, root like tendrils came with them, detaching themselves from her back. It was very possibly the most disturbing thing Kagome had ever seen, not in the least because it reminded her of another evil being that enjoyed tendrils... She could practically hear "Fufufufu" ringing in her ears. She shuddered.

Once the thing had completely detached itself from Fukumura's back, it rose into the air, and dive bombed towards Kagome. Her eyes widened, realizing that for once, she didn't have a pencil or other sharp object on her. This was going to be tricky. Maybe if she could reach Fukumura's box cutter...

She didn't need to worry. The pipe fox zipped out of her sleeve and streaked towards it, enveloping itself in blinding light as it went. The light faded to reveal a large fox youkai. It didn't look like Shippou, Kagome thought irrationally, nor did it look like his father. This fox was leaner and more animalistic, with a design on its face that resembled the fox masks her grandfather kept around the shrine. She stared as the pipe fox leapt onto the winged creature's back, claws extended, and mouth open to bite. She was so intent that she very nearly missed the fact that two root like tendrils were coming towards her. She yelped, and leapt out of the way, old instincts honed in the Sengoku Jidai coming to the fore. The pipe fox snarled, and landed lightly in front of her, fanning out its tails. All nine of them. Kagome's eyes widened.

_Nine tails._ She thought brokenly _I'm being protected by a nine tailed pipe fox. Just when I thought my life couldn't get any stranger..._ The pipe fox bristled, and Kagome felt spiritual power surge around the pipe fox before it blasted towards the thing. It caught on fire, blazing brightly enough for Kagome to shield her eyes.

"I warned you," Yuuko's voice said calmly. Kagome squinted against the flames to see her employer standing in the midst of the dying flames. "I warned you to be careful not to become game for that creature to prey on."

Kagome shivered. Out of no where, Doumeki's hand came to rest on her shoulder. She looked over at him and smiled weakly. "Yes, you did, Yuuko-san. I'm sorry I didn't listen better."

Yuuko shook her head. "I suppose it couldn't be helped. And better you, to whom the pipe fox was so attached, than Watanuki. I will take the child home. You had best go see to your injuries."

"Yes, Yuuko-san." With that, the elder woman beckoned to the pipe fox, and was gone.

Kagome shivered. Yuuko's disappearing acts were always more than a little eerie. Still, there was no helping that, and it was past time to see to Doumeki's hand. "Here, let me take a look at that." She held out a hand.

Slightly amused, Doumeki put his hand into hers. "It's not that bad, really." He told her as she inspected the slice carefully, "I mean, yeah, it's not good, and it'll make archery practice tricky for a few days, but..." He trailed off as Kagome's eyes closed, and she gently ran two of her fingers over the still bleeding cut. Skin flowed together in their wake, leaving a completely healed palm behind them. "How did you do that?" He demanded.

She laughed. "It's actually a trade mark sign of a true miko. I can't do much, just cleanse infection from an open wound and mend low level cuts. If I ever get the training, I might be able to add cleansing illness from the bloodstream and mending higher lever injuries. Nothing like broken bones, or cancer, of course, but the less severe things. Other than that, I know a bunch of herbal remedies, and I'm really, _really_ good at first aid." Her eyes took on a distant, dreamy cast. "The Kami know I've had enough practice, after all."

Doumeki's eyebrow raised. "Really? Doing what?"

Kagome bit her lip, wondering how exactly she should phrase this. "Remember how I said I missed a lot of school my last year in junior high due to something supernatural? Part of it involved needing to give first aid frequently. At any rate, your hand should be completely normal."

He clenched and unclenched is fist a few times, just to give it a trial, then nodded. "Yeah, it's just fine. Can you do anything for her?" He jerked a thumb over his shoulder at the girl.

"No," She responded, shaking her head, "I can't do anything about people's minds, or..." She swallowed hard "Missing souls. Let's take her up to the nurse. Maybe there's something that can be done, but... I kind of doubt it."

Doumeki nodded grimly as he turned to Fukumura. "Well, she's coherent enough that she should be able to walk if we guide her. You take her hand, and let's get going." Kagome nodded and hurried to follow his suggestion. She wanted to get Fukumura into the appropriate care as soon as she could.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

"You're back." Yuuko said calmly as Kagome entered the shop grounds, "How is Doumeki?"

"Fine. I took care of his hand for him, so he doesn't have to worry about providing an explanation for anything. Where's Watanuki-senpai?"

"I sent him home for the night." Yuuko answered with a wave of her hand, "I'm glad to hear the good news about Doumeki. And the girl?"

"You already know," Kagome pointed out, "She lost her soul. She could still walk around, but she lost the most important part of her soul. The school called in a psychiatrist, and he couldn't get her to snap out of it, either. I don't think... I don't think she ever will. Not without her soul."

"Those wings," Yuuko said quietly, "Paralyze a part of the human soul. The part that offers restraint. This is almost, if not more, important than the rest of the soul put together. This would be the part that shows restraint."

"Restraint?" Kagome asked, confused.

Yuuko nodded. "Yes, restraint. The part of the heart that endures discomfort. It's a critical part of dealing with others, more critical even than love. After all," Yuuko explained, "Even if you love someone, if you don't show restraint in your actions, and you don't understand them, things will turn to violence. The wings paralyze that part. Thus, when she was exposed to things that she could handle with no problems under normal circumstances, she got angry."

Kagome nodded, considering. "And the paralysis made it easy to harvest her soul?"

Yuuko smiled and nodded. "Exactly, Kagome-chan."

Kagome sighed, "There's no way to get it back is there?"

"Absolutely none. That creature is called a ko, and collecting souls for its master is it's task. She will not be the only one you see with the wings. They're all over television: They're the people on television you see admitting to a heinous crime, with their family, friends, and neighbors who are in complete shock."

Kagome nodded slowly. "That makes far more sense than it doesn't."

Yuuko nodded. "Indeed. There are basic requirements, of course. They can only bond to people who want strongly to lose their inhibitions."

"I take it," Kagome said after a long pause, "That the master wants the soul for something?"

"But of course." Yuuko agreed. "Take a look out the window."

Kagome did so, leaning out a window to take in the sight of the moon in the distance... the moon which was being crossed by more Ko. Her eyes widened. "That... that's not good." She whispered.

"No. It's not. There is something that I can do about it, but for that to be effective..."

"I need to leave." Kagome finished, "Of course. Ummm... just one question."

"Yes, Kagome-chan?" Yuuko asked, tilting her head to the side.

"How long until the pipe fox returns to normal?" The girl asked from the interior of a former pipe fox cocoon.

Yuuko laughed, "If he isn't fine by tomorrow afternoon, I'll ask you to use your purity to clear some of his energy channels." The older woman assured her.

Kagome nodded. "In that case, I'll leave so you can take care of things." With that, Kagome extracted herself from the pipe fox's grasp, and left the shop. As she shut the gate, she took one last glance back at the shop. She had a feeling that she should be very glad that she didn't have to stay while Yuuko was playing with magic. She doubted that she would much like to see her employer at her most powerful, or be involved in the consequences for using all of that power.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - —

Hello! Welcome to what I think might be becoming your bi-annual update on _The Price of Hitsuzen. _As usual, I come bearing copious apologies for the lateness of this posting, but I again beg for your patience in the name of college and general being really busy-ness. Still, I'm glad that you're all still reading, and I hope that you've all enjoyed this new chapter!

The only real notes that I have for this chapter is on the shitagake. This is a type of under-glove worn to keep the yugake from getting sweaty. Yugake is a type of glove worn on the archer's right hand to protect fingers from the bowstring when drawing the bow. As it's usually made of deerskin and the like, getting sweat on it would _not _be good for it, thus the need for the shitagake. And those things would probably get really rank, really fast. Hence the need to wash them.


	13. Chapter Twelve: Of Lanterns and Manna

So, I logged onto my email something like ten hours after posting Chapter 11, and was greeted by ten fan fiction review/favorite author/favorite story alerts on _The Price of Hitsuzen_. I was moderately stunned, seriously gratified, and very happy. So, to those 10 reviewers, favoriters, or what have you, Chapter 12 is for you! It's also for xx-BlackXRoseXLust-xx, who informed me via reviews and private messages that she has read the story ten times, the last four taking place in a matter of weeks. An impressive feat, that makes my writing skills preen a bit.

As always, _InuYasha: A Feudal Fairytale_ and _XxxHoLiC_ are not mine, nor will they ever be, unless there's some really weird twist of fate thing going on. I would be in whole hearted support of said twist, but realistically speaking... yeah, not going to happen, I know. Still, a girl can dream, can't she?

- — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

"I say! Anyone who'd see a cat's face and go into a panic must be the rudest of people!" A low, yowling voice scolded.

Startled at the crash behind her and the following exclamation, Kagome turned from where she was dusting relics in the storehouse to glance behind her with watery, narrowed eyes. While she valued the concept of slightly more regular cleaning of the place, she wasn't entirely sure that it was worth the migraine that she was getting from it. She blinked, then stared openly at the sight before her. "You know," She commented, blinking repeatedly in an attempt to fully take in the chaos, "If I didn't have such a bad migraine that even the _idea_ of moving hurts, I would be laughing hysterically right now."

"HEY!" Watanuki yelled from his position lying flat on the floor of the storehouse, with a large anthropomorphic cat youkai dressed in an old but elegant kimono kneeling on the small of his back.

"What's all the noise about, Watanuki?" Yuuko asked, popping her head into the store room with Mokona behind her, "We're all out of snacks to go with our drinks! Make some mirin boshi!" Kagome could tell exactly when her employer caught sight of Watanuki's predicament, as her face lit up "Oh!"

The cat youkai's eyes closed and his lips stretched in a feline smile "Good evening, Yuuko-chan."

"Good evening, Akari-chan!" Yuuko replied, beaming, "So, is it really that time of year already?"

"Ahh, Yuuko-san?" Kagome put in delicately, her hands going up to massage her temples in an attempt to keep her migraine from getting any worse than it already was, "Perhaps we should move this discussion to someplace more comfortable? Or, at the very least, off Watanuki-senpai's back? He already has enough issues with the supernatural, he doesn't need to add spinal chord damage to the list."

"Yeah, let's move the small talk OFF OF ME!" Watanuki screeched.

The cat youkai sniffed, "As I said, how rude!"

"Well, you _are_ sitting on his back," Kagome offered, apologetic, "And from the looks of it, I'd say that most of your weight, meager though it may be, is resting more or less on his kidneys. That's not exactly going to endear you to him, you know."

The cat youkai studied her for a long moment, then nodded. "A reasonable point. And you are?"

Kagome bowed politely, keeping her head down as she had learned in the Sengoku Jidai, "This one is Higurashi Kagome, Akari-san. The one you are currently using as a cushion is Watanuki Kimihiro."

The cat's eyes lit with curiosity, "So, _you_ are Higurashi Kagome. I see..." He trailed off, studying her face carefully while Kagome did her best to meet his gaze. With a nod, he gracefully leapt from Watanuki's back. "Very well then. Let us move this inside. I believe you mentioned something about drinks, Yuuko-chan?"

"Yes, of course! Come to the shop!" Yuuko urged.

Kagome glanced at the clock on the wall and sighed. 5:00 pm already, so judging by the looks of things, she was going to be more than a little late getting home. She would make her excuses in an hour if things didn't look like they were wrapping up, she promised herself. After all, it was a school night, and she had homework to get done, especially given that another archery tournament was coming up in the near future.

It took surprisingly little time for Yuuko and the cat youkai to get so intoxicated that Kagome wasn't entirely sure that they could move without assistance. "Now both of them are staggeringly drunk!" Watanuki muttered darkly as they looked in on the drinking buddies from the doorway.

"Watanuki!" Yuuko cried, "Hurry it up! We need more drinks!"

"Drinks!" Akari agreed, raising a paw, "We need drinks!"

Kagome frowned at the spectacle before her, "Perhaps we should switch them over to tea, or something," She mused, "Youkai can get hung over just as easily as humans, after all, if the sake's strong enough, and that cat? Looks about ready to keel over. Rehydrating them will make it bearable to work our shifts here tomorrow."

Watanuki shuddered in agreement. Kagome could tell he was having a flashback to the _last_ time Yuuko had really overindulged. It hadn't been a good day for her part-timers. "_That's _for sure!" He agreed fervently, "I'll go fetch them some tea."

As he walked off, Kagome made a mental note to stop by a pharmacy on her way to school in the morning, or perhaps check with her mother to see if they had any eki-kyabe. They were most _definitely_ going to need it, and Yuuko refused to keep it in the shop, as she claimed that insulted her alcohol tolerance by implying that she could get hangovers. With a sigh, she tilted her head to the side and watched their conversation.

"Isn't it just a little early this year?" Yuuko asked, throwing back the last of her alcohol.

"Perhaps," Akari conceded, "But because we've been had so much rain recently, everyone can get together easily. He eyed Kagome as she came in to pick up some of the cups and empty sake jugs. "So. It's you."

Kagome's eyebrows rose, "I'm many things, several of which could be called 'it'. Until I know exactly what you're talking about, I can't say for sure."

The cat youkai smiled brightly, "Ah, a clever one. No _wonder_ the Leaf Clan insists that you are their matriarch. A small clan, yes, but a powerful one."

Kagome tilted her head to the side, "Shippou's clan? The foxes?"

The cat nodded with a typically enigmatic smile. "Indeed. And only a fool would miss the jewel around your neck from this distance. As I am not a fool, I can discern that you are _also_ the miko of the Shikon no Tama."

She smiled back equally enigmatic, "It's certainly possible."

"Isn't she precious?" Yuuko asked, twining her arms around Kagome's shoulders.

Kagome shook her head as she unwound herself from Yuuko's embrace. "If you say so, Yuuko-san. I need to take these to the kitchen. Watanuki-senpai should be here in a minute with more to drink."

"Thank you, Kagome-chan!" Yuuko cheered.

"Yes, thank you, Kagome-san." Akari agreed.

Kagome ran into Watanuki as he was muttering darkly over the tea kettle, and reached out to stop him from slamming the delicate porcelain tea bowls onto a tray. "Calm _down_, Watanuki-senpai! Do you know how fragile those are? What's wrong?"

"We only have matcha. I don't know how to prepare matcha instead of leaf tea! WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?! WHY DOESN'T SHE HAVE NORMAL TEA!?" Wantanuki shrieked.

"Watanuki-senpai." Kagome said, voice as soothing as possible, "Matcha _is_ normal tea. It's just powdered. And don't worry. _I_ know how to prepare matcha." She smiled quietly, thinking of how she had finally caved and learned how to perform the tea ceremony due to the addition of an overbearing daiyoukai in her party. "I'll take care of it. Set the kettle and the matcha on the tray, and let me go digging for... where does she keep her tea things?"

"Uhhhh... Iiiiiiiin" Watanuki turned in a few circles, pointing his finger as he did. He stopped abruptly to point at a cabinet in the corner. "There."

Kagome marched over, opened the worn cabinet door, and smiled at the sight of a slightly worn looking chasen. She took it out and set it next to the tea bowls, kettle, and small box of matcha. "There. Perfect. Come on, you should know how to do this for next time. You never know when she's going to need some hangover prevention, and I'm guessing that the 'only having matcha' thing is one of Yuuko-san's..." She hesitated over the correct term, "Charming idiosyncrasies." Watanuki shuddered, but followed.

She had to hide a smile at the pouts on the faces of Yuuko and the cat youkai when they realized that their drinks would be of the decidedly non-alcoholic variety. However, the cat youkai seemed to get over it rather quickly. "So... it's this kid, right?"

"Huh?" Watanuki asked, baffled.

"I heard..." Akari continued with a smug smile as Kagome carefully spooned matcha into the two tea bowls, "That the Zashiki-Warashi really likes him?" The girl glanced over at her co-worker, and didn't bother to fight the snicker that resulted from his look of horrified embarrassment. "And he completed the Rain Child's task." The youkai turned to beam at him "You're quite famous in our world!"

"WHAAAAT?!" Watanuki shrieked, drawing the attention of Maro and Moro, who had been lurking in the corner of the room.

The twins skipped over to him, chanting "You're famous! You're famous!"

Yuuko cackled as Kagome snickered as she whisked the tea. "Isn't that a good thing?" The older woman asked as Kagome handed her the tea bowl, "Thank you, Kagome-chan!" She took a sip, then her eyes widened and she smiled, "This is lovely!"

Kagome smiled and passed the cat youkai his own bowl. He sniffed, nodded in approval, and raised it to his lips. "It is indeed excellent."

"And what the hell is 'our world' supposed to mean?" Watanuki muttered darkly, still fending off the attentions of Maro and Moro.

Akari pulled a pocket watch out of his kimono sleeve, opened it, and started. "My, so late already? I've got to get going."

Yuuko's lips formed a pout, then nodded. "Thank you this year as well."

Akari smiled as he pulled two paper lanterns from his sleeves. "It's no problem! Yuuko and I are friends! Besides," He added, handing one of the two lanterns to a startled Kagome, "It's not just a favor for you, this year. The Leaf Clan asked me to pass this along to your employee, as I would be here anyway. As for you, Yuuko," he added as he handed Yuuko the other lantern, "You can give this to Watanuki, this year!"

"Eh?" Watanuki asked, baffled.

"You're a troublesome child," the cat youkai informed him, "But I think Yuuko can handle it. Keep up the good work!" He told Yuuko, "Though the difference is slight, all aspects of him will start to change." He turned to Kagome with an enigmatic smile, "Thank you for the tea. It was quite delightful." He finished off the tea with relish. "It should pay the delivery fee for your ghost lantern. And the delicious snacks from before should pay for his." He took a third ghost lantern out of his sleeve. The lantern started to glow eerily. "Well, see you next year!" He called, heading out into the yard.

"Next year!" Maro and Moro cheered together in farewell.

From the yard, Akari waved once, then vanished, cocooned in streamers of glowing light.

"Yuuko... what is...?" Watanuki asked eyebrows furrowed.

"That is..." Yuuko trailed off with a smug smile as she sipped at her tea.

"Ghost lantern..." Kagome's eyes narrowed as her went through her mental database of supernatural knowledge before growling in frustration, "The name sounds familiar, but I can't place it. Irritating."

Yuuko's smile grew even more smug. "Yes," she agreed, "I imagine it is. With one of these, you can join."

Watanuki blinked. "Join what?"

"You'll know when you join." Yuuko's smug smile had just crossed into smirk territory.

Kagome shook her head "And Yuuko-san wants to be mysterious again. I'm heading home. I'll see you both tomorrow." And with that, Kagome heading out of the shop and towards the subway station.

- — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

"That is?" Himawari asked, taking a dainty bite out of her sandwhich.

"It's called 'a ghost lantern'." Watanuki told her cheerfully.

"What an uncreative name." Doumeki pointed out.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" the other boy shrieked.

"Isn't it just?" Kagome agreed, talking over her co-workers rise towards Psychotic Rant Mode, "It's irritating... the name rings a bell, but I can't place it."

"Well, something weird happened, didn't it?" Doumeki asked dryly. "After all, that one's involved, so something weird _has_ to be going on."

Kagome rolled her eyes. "No kidding. No exception here- we got a visit from a cat youkai. Not that unusual in the grand scheme of things, but considering the fact that youkai aren't all that common anymore."

"Well, according to Yuuko, if you have one, you can join." Watanuki said, more to Himawari than to Doumeki and Kagome, but they still jumped to the other conversation.

"Join what?" Doumeki demanded.

"You find out when you join." Watanuki answered with a shrug.

"Hence why I'm irritated that I'm not connecting the term 'ghost lantern' to what it does." Kagome explained.

"Yeah, that _would_ be annoying."

"That sounds really fun!" Himawari bubbled.

"In that case," Watanuki piped up eagerly, "Himawari-chan! Please come with me tomorrow!"

"Ah!" Himawari said with cheerful regret, "I'm busy tomorrow, sorry!" Watanuki fell forward in his sorrow.

Kagome shook her head before turning to Doumeki. "So, Shizuka-senpai, as one lantern can take two people, would you like to come with me?"

The smile that flashed across Doumeki's face was innocent to have her eyes narrowing. "Are you asking me out on a date, Kagome?"

Her eyes went wide, and she hoped beyond hope that she wasn't blushing furiously like she thought she was. "No, of course not! I thought you might like to see whatever it is." She was proud of how well she managed to keep her voice steady and maintain eye contact. "Besides, it involves spirits and Watanuki-senpai- I need all the back up I can get."

Doumeki stored her reaction in the back of his head to analyze later. The bright red blush was a pretty good indication that his situation might not be as desperate as he had thought. He offered her his usual smirk, and answered "Sure. Could be fun, and you're right- we have to keep an eye on the trouble magnet, don't we?"

- — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

It had just started to get dark when Kagome climbed the steps from the subway to the station near Yuuko's. She shuddered, eyes darting around as she reached the top. They were darting around so much that she managed to walk right into the solid wall of black in front of her. Naturally, she responded by shrieking.

"Hey, Kagome, calm down!" She relaxed as the familiar voice wrapped around her, rather like its owner took hold of her arms to keep her from falling back down the stairs, "It's me."

Kagome righted herself, taking deep breaths. "Kami! You scared me, Shizuka-senpai! What are you doing here? My subway station isn't on your way to the park."

Doumeki raised an eyebrow. "Did you _really_ think I was going to let a girl go walking around Tokyo at night by herself?"

Kagome smiled up at him. "Ever the gentleman, Shizuka-senpai! I appreciate it."

He smirked, "Glad to hear it."

She shook her head. "No, really. I'd just figured out that I was leaving the subway, at night, well, ok, evening, alone. A bit stupid, considering that I'm a girl..."

He laughed, and they headed off to the park where they were supposed to meet Watanuki.

The other boy, as expected, was _not_ pleased to see Doumeki. "YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO COME!" He yelled, flapping his arms frantically, making a brilliant foray into Psychotic Rant Mode.

"It's rude to turn down an invitation." Doumeki said with a smirk.

"IF SOMETHING HAPPENS, I REFUSE TO SAVE YOU!" Watanuki shrieked.

"Ahhh, Watanuki-senpai?" Kagome began tentatively, but Doumeki continued over her.

"Have you ever saved me before?" He demanded bluntly. His request seemed to send Watanuki over the edge of sanity.

"Wow, Shizuka-senpai," Kagome said, awestruck, watching Watanuki as she carefully took one of the two bundles out of her coworkers arms before he dropped or smashed the ghost lantern inside, "I think you might have broken him. He certainly can't speak properly anymore. Just look at how he's been reduced to grunting and shaking his fists."

Doumeki smirked at her. "So, what do we do now?"

Kagome bit her lip. "What time is it?"

"Almost midnight." Doumeki answered after a glance at his watch.

"Alright, then." Kagome started unwrapping the lantern, inhaling sharply when she saw that it was glowing brightly. "Well that's... unexpected. Watanuki-senpai, you might want to snap out of it and get your lantern. I think...it's starting."

"It's glowing." Doumeki said, leaning forward to get a closer look.

"Yes, but it's not hot." Kagome assured him.

"Hey, what's this?" Doumeki asked, bending down to pick up a folded piece of paper from the cloth that had surrounded Kagome's ghost lantern.

She frowned, "I have no idea. I didn't put it there, and I was the one who bundled up the lanterns yesterday afternoon. Weird..."

"'Note'," Doumeki read, "'Only the person holding the ghost lantern will be able to see and join it. So, two people together will have to hold the lantern together just like...'" Doumeki trailed off, glancing over at Kagome, who was tilting her head far enough to the side in an attempt to read alongside him that her cheek was almost brushing his shoulder, "'Just like the way a bride and groom cut their wedding cake together. Yuuko.'" The two turned to look at each other.

Kagome opened her mouth to respond, when Watanuki broke in. "I DON'T WANT TO! WHY DO DOUMEKI AND I– WHY COULDN'T IT BE HIMAWARI INSTEAD!?"

His friends rolled their eyes in concert. "Oi, Watanuki, be quiet! I don't want to share with you either- Kagome doesn't make so much noise!"

She laughed. "It's true, I don't. In that case, should I start humming that Western wedding song?"

Doumeki grinned evilly, "We haven't even had an omiai- just think how disappointed your grandfather will be."

"We already know each other, so it's not strictly necessary. Then again..." She trailed off, offering a smug smile of her own, "He _would_ like to meet you before we do anything permanent."

He smirked back and took hold of the lantern, his hand brushing against Kagome's. By then, Watanuki had come to stand next to them, his own hand gripping the handle to his ghost lantern tightly. The same streamers of light that had wrapped around the cat youkai to transport him away from Yuuko's store wrapped around the group. Kagome squinted against the brightness of the light, then blinked as it cleared away.

"Wha–" that was Watanuki.

"Where _are_ we?" Doumeki demanded.

Kagome was too busy blinking back tears to care. In front of her, there were hordes of youakai, all lesser youkai, or those who preferred to take their animal forms. It was so much like the Sengoku Jidai... so much like that world that she would _never _get back. Even the feel of youki lurking in the air was like it had been. She hadn't realized just how much she missed it. She shook her head briefly to clear it and took in the scene in front of her. Her eyebrows came together. "Is... is this Hyakkiyako?" she asked Doumeki.

His eyes narrowed, but he nodded slowly, "The thing where ghosts and spirits hold lanterns and march in procession? Yes... I think it is."

"What's Hyakkiyako?" Watanuki demanded.

"It's something that was drawn in the Edo period," Kagome explained, "A picture book of youkai and spirits called Hyakkiyako."

"So... we're in a book?" Watanuki asked, voice started to rise in levels of freaking out.

"I'm not sure." Doumeki answered.

"WHAT?! YOU DON'T KNOW?!" Watanuki demanded.

"No, Watanuki-senpai," Kagome answered quietly, "And _do_ be quiet- you're attracting attention!"

"What are you doing?" A fish youkai called.

"Yes, if you don't hurry, you'll be left behind!" The turtle youkai added.

"And then you can't join the Hyakkiyako." Agreed a raccoon youkai.

"So this _is_ the world of Hyakkiyako." Watanuki said, thankfully at a lower volume than the last time he had spoken.

"Of course!" A rabbit youkai spoke up, "Every year the demons and spirits gather here. If it's not the Hyakkiyako, what else could it be?"

"I mean, this isn't inside a book?" He asked as Kagome covered her eyes with her hand.

"Watanuki-senpai..." She groaned.

"If that's a joke," the fish youkai scolded Watanuki, "It wasn't funny at all."

"Humans draw this too?" A crane youkai asked, confused.

"Oh! We'll be left behind!" One of the youkai pointed out.

"Come on! Let's hurry!"

"How does it feel?" Doumeki asked the others urgently.

"Huh?" Watanuki answered.

"He means do we smell anything or feel anything weird." Kagome answered. "Since he can't tell himself, he wants to know if we do." She turned to the boy holding onto her lantern, "No. There's a high concentration of youki around, but that's just because well, there's a lot of youkai around. It happens."

"Ok, so that means that the spirits in this procession aren't evil, right?" Doumeki pointed out, "They're right in front of you, but they don't make either of you feel uncomfortable. So, they don't mean you any harm. They're not dangerous."

"I... I guess..." Watanuki said slowly, still looking uncomfortable.

Kagome bit her lip, then shook her head. "Not... exactly." She corrected, "The fact that neither of us feels anything tainted means that they don't mean us any harm at the present, yes. That doesn't mean that they're not dangerous, just that as long as we don't offend anybody, we should be fine."

"Fair enough," Doumeki agreed with a nod, "Absolutes are never a good idea, anyway. So, you two... you're like detectors of good and evil."

"Why would you think that?!" Watanuki demanded, "Where's the proof?!"

Doumeki arched an eyebrow. "There isn't any."

"DON'T ACT SO SURE THEN!"

"Actually," Kagome cut in, "Doumeki's at least half right. I can sense impurity in souls. It's part of the whole miko thing. Usually, impurity shows up as evil intentions. You probably can sense ill will directed towards you in particular, Watanuki-senpai. Besides, we really do need to get moving, or we'll be left behind. And I, for one, don't particularly feel like missing my first Hyakkiyako."

"Right. Come on, let's go." Doumeki and Kagome took off at a run, striving to catch up with the rest of the procession.

"ARRRRRGH! DON'T GO SO FAST!" Watanuki yelled as he trailed behind them.

"Sorry, Watanuki-senpai!" Kagome called back, "But maybe you should start working on your running a bit more." She and Doumeki came to a halt as they reached the side of the procession, staring up in awe at the procession. This was, Kagome thought, the single highest number of youkai that she had ever seen in one place. Well, one place that wasn't a battle field. Naraku had called forth more minions in this for the last battle, she supposed, but that _definitely_ wasn't the same.

"But where are they _going_?" Watanuki demanded.

Doumeki looked back over his shoulder, throwing the boy a look that questioned his sanity... and perhaps his intelligence as well. "How would I know?"

"CAN YOU BE A LITTLE MORE POLITE?!" Watanuki snapped, before turning on his heel... and ramming smack into a crow youkai.

"Ow!" His victim yelped, "That _hurts_!"

"Oh! I'm sorry!" Watanuki said, wincing slightly.

"That's... really big." Doumeki said softly.

Kagome turned away from Watanuki and his antics to follow Doumeki's gaze. Her jaw dropped slightly. "Tree youkai," She breathed, "That's a tree youkai!"

"It's a really amazing tree." Doumeki murmured, "Feel any loathing for it?"

She shook her head with a smile. "Not at all. It's overwhelming, certainly, but to be _that_ big? It must be a really, _really_ old tree youkai. Which would make it pretty overwhelming almost by default, don't you think?"

Doumeki shrugged. "Makes sense to me."

"From the looks of these flowers, it's really flourishing this year!" A nearby toad youkai said eagerly.

"Yeah, definitely!" Its neighbor, an oni, agreed.

"What are they doing?" Watanuki asked, squinting, "There's a weird glint on my glasses from the lanterns. I can't see anything!"

Kagome stood on tip toe to try to get a better view, then shook her head ruefully. "I can't see over the heads of the crowd. What about you, Shizuka-senpai?"

"It _looks_ like they're holding the lanterns next to the flowers." Doumeki said slowly, "I don't have any idea _why_ they're holding them there, but that's what I see them doing."

Watanuki took a step forward, Kagome could only assume in an attempt to get the light to reflect somewhere _other_ than his glasses lenses, and he brilliantly managed to trip over a raised rock in the ground. "AH!" He yelled, successfully catching the attention of each and every youkai in the vicinity. Kagome groaned and covered her eyes with her hand. She could already tell that this would _not_ be easily dealt with.

"There are humans," The whispered phrase passed through the crowd of youkai, gaining volume steadily as it was repeated, "There are humans!"

"Why do they have a ghost lantern?" An owl youkai demanded.

"More importantly," a tiger youkai demanded, "How shall we deal with these humans?"

"Why don't we eat them?" Suggested an oni with one eye, licking his lips and revealing two incisors that were sharpened to delicate points. A rumble of assent passed through the crowd.

"For the record?" Kagome said quietly, "_This_ would be why I said that the youkai weren't evil, but that didn't mean that they weren't dangerous."

"Right now, that makes a _lot_ of sense." Doumeki muttered.

"So, we're agreed, then?" The tiger youkai demanded, "We eat them?"

The whispers of "Yes, yes, eat them!" were just a _tad _bit too enthusiastic for Kagome's taste. The fact that they were there at all made them too enthusiastic for her taste.

Biting her lip, she dug in her pocket for her penknife. "I _think_ I can hold a barrier long enough for you two to reason with them..." She began, when she was interrupted rather abruptly.

"WAIT!" A tiny figure ran for them pelmel, going through a tiny gap in the crowd.

"You!" Watanuki said, eyes startled, "You're from the Oden Place!"

Sure enough, it was the little fox youkai from the Oden Cart. He stopped directly in front of Kagome, who had Watanuki and Doumeki on either side of her. His lantern dangling at his side, he thrust one little paw into the sleeve of his kimono and pulled out the fletching of Doumeki's arrow that Watanuki had given him. "I got this from him!" He yelled, holding it up in front of Watanuki.

"An exorcism arrow," a horse youkai from the other side of the circle said, stunned, "What a great present!"

"A human with a pure heart is helping us dispel evil." The owl youkai confirmed, "It's a very good protection amulet."

"He gave this to me after complimenting Father's oden!" The fox kit pleaded, "He's a really good person, so please don't eat him!"

"What about the other two?" The oni asked, his eye alight with a fervor that Kagome had seen in some of her shrines more devoted followers, "They're not him. We can eat them, right?"

The fox kit's face turned mutinous. "NO! She is of the Leaf Clan. You eat her, OR her guest, and we make you pay! She is irreplaceable to us!"

- — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - —

Doumeki glanced sideways at Kagome as she reached out to set a hand on the kit's shoulder. At least _she_ seemed to know what the kit was talking about, because _he_ sure didn't, and judging from his confusion, he doubted that Watanuki did either. Maybe it had to do with her fascination with foxes... He turned his attention to the crowd. The youkai around them murmured, bafflement roiling through the crowd, and Doumeki found himself wishing that he had his bow with him, just to be on the safe side.

"_Enough_," A booming voice that Doumeki wasn't entirely sure was solely in the air around him and not in his head thundered loudly enough to break through the babbling. "_It is fine. I will give something to the human children as well. The girl with her clan. The boy alone._" Doumeki turned to stare up at the tree once again. That voice, judging from Kagome's look of reverence, was from the tree youkai. He had to admit, it was very definitely impressive.

"The tree," Watanuki whispered, "Did you hear that? The tree seems to be talking!"

"That's not just a tree, Watanuki-senpai," Kagome corrected him, "That's a tree _youkai_. Of course it can speak."

"How is this tree?" Doumeki muttered to Kagome.

She turned and smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry. He's perfectly alright. Just..." She blew out a long breath, "Very intimidating."

"_No need to exaggerate,_" The tree youkai seemed almost amused with Kagome's words.

"Ack!" Squeaked Watanuki.

"Hear that?" Doumeki asked, impressed in spite of himself. The youkai had pretty good hearing... for a tree.

Kagome shook her head with a smirk, "It _is_ a youkai." She pointed out, "A very old one at that. Of _course _his hearing's good."

"_Please,_" the tree encouraged, "_Approach._" When they, along with the fox kit, had reached the base of the trunk, he continued, "_Welcome. Please, place your lantern hear, boy. You, my dear,_" he added, and this time his voice seemed directed at Kagome, "_Will wait until your clan arrives._"

"Yes, youkai-sama." Kagome murmured.

The tree youkai chuckled, and Doumeki thought he could hear a trace of glee under the laugh, the way a young child would laugh and say 'I know something you don't know!' He frowned a little. What could the tree youkai possibly know about the three of them.

Watanuki held his lantern under the flower which the tree youkai had indicated, and a nectar spilled out from the heart of the flower. Watanuki's nose twitched, and he started, staring at the lantern-turned-container. "That smell..."

Doumeki smelled the sweet smell of grapes mixed with alcohol. "Wine?" He asked the tree youkai.

"Mm!" The fox kit answered from where he sat with his arms wrapped around Kagome's leg. "Well, not exactly, but..."

The tree youkai chuckled again, "_The kit is correct. It is _like_ your wine, but not quite. This is manna, that only the spirits who join Hyakkiyako receive once a year. Please, drink it sparingly. Thanks to this little fox, you have received a share as well._"

Watanuki bent over to shake the little fox's paw. "Thank you!" The kit blushed and buried his face into Kagome's knee. Kagome reached down to stroke the fur of his head in a soothing gesture.

"_Child with the unique aura,_" the tree youkai said, this time to Watanuki, "_The things that are attracted to you are not always good. So far, it must have caused much misery. However, it's beginning to change, though the change is slight. Please, treasure it. Especially the transformation you went through after meeting someone._" The focus of the voice changed again, and this time, Doumeki felt the full weight of the tree youkai's attention upon him. Even he, spiritually blind and senseless as he was, could feel the tree assessing him for a long moment before reaching a conclusion. "_Boy, I am afraid that what is for the girl is meant only for herself and her clan. You must return home with the other boy. Take hold of his lantern._"

"But–" Doumeki started to protest. There was no _way_ he was leaving Kagome here without any backup except for a fox kit!

"Shizuka-senpai," Kagome cut in, placing her hand on his arm and cocking her head towards Watanuki, "I'll be fine. I can take care of myself a bit, you know that. And no one's going to hurt me as youkai-sama and the Leaf Clan have made sure that I'm off limits. I'll stop by your shrine as soon as I get back, I promise!"

Doumeki snorted. "Don't worry about getting to the shrine, he told her dryly, "I'll wait for you at the park."

She shook her head, smiling again. "You really _are_ a gentleman, aren't you? Alright, then, I'll see you when I get back!"

He nodded and took a hold of Watanuki's lantern, reluctantly letting the fingers of his other hand slide through the handle of the one he had shared with Kagome. "Later." He said, just before he and Watanuki were enveloped in the streamers of light.

Kagome watched both boys as they disappeared, then turned back to the tree youkai with a sigh. A light tug on her skirt had her looking down at the fox kit. "Don't be sad, great-grandmother!" He told her, smiling brightly, "Now you get to meet everyone! The clan will be here in a moment, to collect our shares of the manna, and we'll go talk for a bit. Everyone's excited to meet the matriarch!"

She laughed and ruffled the fur on his head. "Oh really? Well, I'm certainly excited to meet the family I never knew I had! Are they all as precious as you?" The kit's giggle was accompanied by the rumbling laugh of the tree youkai. Kagome craned her neck upwards to consider him. "I had thought that you would be more formal, youkai-sama, given your age."

"_Perhaps with others, but you are an old friend, Kagome-chan._"

Her jaw dropped. "H-how did you know my name?"

"_Both of the Inu no Taisho's sons spoke of you often, Sesshoumaru-sama more highly than InuYasha-san, true, and you came to my grove once, many, many years ago, when youkai still ruled the Earth, visible to all._" The old tree youkai explained, his voice softer than Kagome had heard it yet.

Her eyes closed as chewed her lip, mind trying to process what the tree youkai had said. A tree youkai that had known Sesshoumaru and InuYasha's father, one who had the respect of the elder brother, no mean feat. A tree youkai whom she herself had met... Her eyes flew open. "Bokuseno-sama?" she asked, awe struck, "You're still alive?"

The youkai, who must have been very old indeed, as he had been far from a spring chicken during the Sengoku Jidai, chuckled once again. "_Indeed I am. It is very hard to kill a tree youkai. Once we pass a certain stage of growth, it becomes all but impossible to burn us or chop us down. Although, I must say, you have offered me more laughter in one Hyakkiyako than I have had for many years. Now, take your manna. Your clan approaches, and it is your place as matriarch to receive the first lantern full._"

Kagome nodded and moved to place her lantern under the flower to collect her manna.

- — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

What seemed like a lifetime later, Kagome allowed herself to be cocooned in light so that she could return to the mortal world. Her head swam with new names with fox faces to go along with then and new stories of her Shippou to paint a picture of the reynard her kit had become when he grew up. They were infinitely precious to her, even if they mattered little to anyone else but her clan. But now it was time to set aside her clan and focus on the boy she saw rising from the swing he had been sitting on while he waited.

"Shizuka-senpai! I'm back!" She called, walking forward to meet him.

"You are, and it's a good thing." He told her with a wry smile, "It's almost midnight."

Kagome stared, "You're kidding! It's really _that_ late? Awwwww... Mama knows I'm going to be late tonight, but I was hoping for a pre-midnight subway ride. Oh well. It's my own fault, I suppose. When did you and Watanuki get back?"

"Only an hour or so before you did, so it wasn't like I was waiting for you _that_ long. Anyway, Yuuko was waiting for us when we got back."

Her eyebrows rose as they began walking towards the subway station, "Oh really? What was she doing there?"

"Lying in wait, I think." He told her with a smirk, "Less than a minute after we got back, Watanuki asked why Yuuko had given him the lantern. So, completely out of nowhere, she answered him. Just randomly appeared at the top of that slide over there," he gestured at the largest slide in the playground, "And announced that she had given Watanuki the lantern because she wanted the manna, _of course_."

Kagome burst into laughter. "Oh goodness, so he was just her errand runner? I bet he didn't enjoy that, since Kichirou was the only thing that stopped him from being youkai food!"

Doumeki frowned, his expression turning quizzical, "Kichirou? I'm guessing that's the fox kit?"

She nodded, still giggling. "Yes, that's Kichirou. Was that all that she did?"

His grin turned evil again, "No. Watanuki was standing at the base of the slide."

Her hand went to her mouth as her giggles started up again, "Oh dear. She slid down and landed on him?"

"Got it in one." his grin widened as he continued, "She plowed him into the ground- _after_ I had taken the lantern off of his hands, naturally."

"Naturally." She shook her head as she continued to giggle, "I really shouldn't be laughing at this. Watanuki-senpai could have gotten hurt."

"Oh, he did." Doumeki assured her, "But what can I say, that's schadenfreude, made even better by the fact that Watanuki worked out the fact that he was just her errand boy immediately _after_ he face planted into the playground dirt."

Kagome shook her head slowly, a smile still on her face, "Poor Watanuki-senpai. What next- did someone tell him that the person who was causing him to change was Yuuko-san?"

"Due to his enslavement to her? Oh yeah. I was the one who pointed it out to him, actually, over a cup of manna."

"You did? Shizuka-senpai!" She scolded with a smile.

"It was too good of an opportunity to pass up." He explained with a shrug. "Anyway, now I can add 'total lightweight' to the list of things to use to rile Watanuki up. He was out of it after two glasses. Yuuko and I had... a conversation."

Her head tipped to the side. "What about?"

Doumeki hesitated for a moment before he answered, "Why she doesn't want me to come into the shop very often, for one. You were right- I don't need the shop to be there, so it causes problems when I try to get through the barriers."

"I thought so. It was the only thing that made sense, really."

"Yeah..." He trailed off, and looked into the distance for a moment before continuing, "We talked a bit about you, actually."

Kagome froze before she turned to look at him. Just what had Yuuko told him? "Oh... really? What did she say?"

"Not much, if that's what you're worried about," He reassured her, "Mostly that for various mysterious reasons she won't tell me, you're related to a bunch of fox youkai, which may or may not be related to your adoration of all things fox. That, and if I ever wanted to find out what they were, patience would probably be important."

Her lips twitched as she relaxed again. "She's right." She agreed.

Doumeki's eyes narrowed slightly. "You're not going to tell me, are you?" he asked as they reached the subway steps.

Kagome beamed back at him. "Not right now, no." She stopped before she headed down the stairs. "Thanks for coming with me, Shizuka-senpai, even if you did have to leave before me, and for waiting for me afterwards."

"Not a problem." Doumeki assured her, before very slowly reaching out to tuck a lock of her hair that had gotten into her face behind her ear. His hand lingered there for a moment, before he let it fall. "I had a good time, nearly becoming youkai food aside, and you know I'm always happy to walk you to your subway."

They stared at each other for a long moment, then Kagome smiled. "Well, I have to catch my train. Good night, Shizuka-senpai."

"Good night Kagome."

With a wave, she turned and headed down the stairs. As soon as she reached the lower landing, she turned and thumped her back against the wall, the blush she'd managed to suppress rapidly staining her cheeks a dark red, and her fingers coming up to touch the lock of hair Doumeki had tucked behind her ear. She stayed there for a long moment before shaking her head and running to catch her train.

Today had _certainly_ been eventful. A good eventful definitely, but eventful none the less, and Kagome figured that it would take pretty much all of her trip across Tokyo to process it all.

- — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

So, welcome to your bi-annual installment of _The Price of Hitsuzen_! This time, not only do the apologies come for general busyness, but for general busyness, plus distractions of being in a foreign country, a summer econ class, and hunting for a summer job. So. Blame Montpellier, France for your update being... two to three months later than I wanted it to be. This is what happens in the life of a college student.

Now, on to the slightly more pertinent notes:

1) Eki-kyabe: A direct reference from the manga, finding out what eki-kyabe beyond 'some sort of hangover cure' was a good plan, as I point blank refuse to use something in my writing if I don't know what it is. Thus, I turned to the almighty Sage of Knowledge (aka Google) for an explanation as to what this mysterious thing is. As it turns out, eki-kyabe is what is known as a salaryman's kampo, an over the counter medication taken by salarymen in Japan to make up for some of their less than healthy habits. In the case of eki-kyabe, that would be overeating or drinking, as eki-kyabe is a digestive aid that aids with the relief of nausea, belching, discomfort to the stomach, etc. It's also very, _very _good for dealing with hangovers. As an unrelated side note, according to the blog posting by a student of acupuncture and Japanese herbal medicine, eki-kyabe means something along the lines of 'cabbage liquid'... but doesn't actually contain any cabbage or cabbage extracted ingredients. Weird, that.

2) Tea bowls, matcha, and chasen: All of these are related to the Japanese tea ceremony, which I'm _really_ not going to go into, because as I've never actually seen one performed, I _will_ manage to screw it up. First of all, in Japan, tea is traditionally served in cups that are more like bowls. They don't have handles, and are larger than the standard Western tea cup. Next in line, matcha is powdered green tea, typically used in the tea ceremony. This isn't standard tea that you leave either in a tea bag or a strainer and let it steep in hot water to produce tea the strength that you want, this is powder that is placed in the tea bowl first. Hot water is poured over the matcha, and then we come to point number three. The chasen is a tea whisk. It's used to mix the matcha into the water to convert it to tea. Made out of bamboo, it is stored on a chasen kusenaoshi in order to maintain its shape when not in use.

3) Omiai: This is a meeting between two young people and their parents, usually with a matchmaker, to determine whether they're suitable for marriage. Typically instigated by parents who are panicking that their son/daughter isn't doing anything to find a suitable partner, omiais are highly meditated, and involve steps such as ensuring that both parties see a picture of the other to prevent rejection based purely on appearances. The omiai not only gives the young people a chance to get to know one another, but slightly more importantly, it introduces the two families. If this is making you think of an arranged marriage, then you would be absolutely right! Omiai is the first step to a Japanese arranged marriage. While it's not _quite_ the same thing as its parallel in Western culture, the general idea is the same. In this usage, it's a joke, as Doumeki and Kagome have been told that they are the 'bride and groom'. Doumeki is both referencing the fact that they aren't dating (yet) and that he hasn't met her family, notably Kagome's very traditional grandfather, who would probably be the one trying to set up omiai if Kagome was about... six years older.

4) Hyakkiyako: Usually seen as two words 'Hyakki Yakō' or 'Hyakki Yagō', this literally translates to 'Night Parade of 100 Demons'. It is a Japanese legend that states that every year, youkai lead by Nurarihyon (the leader of the youkai) will take to the streets on a summer night. Any human who comes across the parade unprotected will die. Traditionally, protection comes in the form of scrolls written by an onmyoji spellcaster, and only a scroll from an onmyoji clanhead is strong enough to stand up to Nurarihyon. Ironically, the Hyakkiyako is related to the game of telling 100 ghost stories that Yuuko instigated in chapter four. The Hyakkiyako is also a popular subject in art. After all, what artist wouldn't want the chance to draw a hundred youkai? Talk about freedom in artwork! The earliest known piece of artwork depicting the Hyakkiyako is an art scroll from the 16th century which can be found in Kyoto.

5) Kichirou: the name Kichirou contains the characters for kichi and rou. 'Kichi' translates to 'good luck'. 'Rou' means 'son'. Thus, Kichirou (using the characters that I did) means 'good luck son', which I found rather fitting for the fox kit. I hope you agree!

5) Schadenfreude: from the German, meaning happiness at the misfortune of others. This is here partially because I wanted to make sure that it was understood as, while schadenfreude is one of my favorite words, it is a bit odd. The other reason that it's here is to give credit where it's due, as I wrote that scene while listening to the song "Schadenfreude" from the musical _Avenue Q_. I highly recommend it.

On a slightly less technical note, it occurs to me that I unintentionally lied, as another character from _InuYasha_ has snuck into _The Price of Hitsuzen_. Still, when I reread the chapter and saw talking tree, my mind went immediately to 'tree youkai', and from there, it wasn't exactly a huge leap to 'Bokuseno'. Once the idea was there, it was impossible to dislodge, so I didn't bother. Thus, Bokuseno now produces manna, and is the only exception to previous statements about the presence of _InuYasha_ characters. Period. There will still be no Sesshoumaru, no Inutachii, no Naraku. End of discussion.

Thus, I'd like to close with sincere and profound thanks to all the readers who have put up with the extreme version of my very, very lousy posting habits. Hopefully, the next one won't take anywhere _near_ as long to get up!

...I have to ask, does it make it better or worse that I've had most of the dedication and disclaimer and the first couple of sentences of the disclaimer sitting on my computer since, oh, late October?


	14. Chapter Thirteen: Of Coughs and Absence

For the fourteenth time, I would like to establish that I own neither _InuYasha: A Feudal Fairytale_, nor _XxxHoLiC_. Seriously. The nifty iPhone I'm getting for Christmas is so nifty in part because it will be the first smart phone to ever come into my possession. Do you think that would be the case if I held the rights to either of these seriously popular works, and therefore received their royalties? No, my friends. No, it would not be. Thus, I do not own them, and life must go on.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

It was a rather peaceful day at the store, Kagome decided as she dusted Yuuko's inner sanctum, wrinkling her nose at just how much pipe ash was in the storekeeper's ash trey. A wry smile flickered across her face as she carefully emptied it into the bin. After all, a large portion of the reason this afternoon was so peaceful was because Yuuko had a visit disguised as an errand with a friend on the other side of town, and took Mokona with her. Their lack of presence meant that Watanuki's torment was at an all time low, resulting in the presence of Watanuki's calmer, more stable personality, for once. Kagome reveled in it while she still could.

The phone shattered her reverie abruptly, blasting out two quick rings before Kagome could pick it up. "Hello, this is Yuuko's. How may I help you?" She rattled off in the polite, mildly interested tones that she had mastered at the age of six in order to answer the shrine's public phone properly. The same rules, she assumed, applied at a magical wishing store.

"Kagome-chan? It's Yuuko-san."

"Oh, hello, Yuuko-san," Kagome said with a smile, "Are you heading home then? What time should Watanuki expect you? I think I heard him say something about dinner..."

"Ehh, that's what I was calling about," Yuuko said, sounding a little apologetic, "The traffic's _horrible_ on this side of Tokyo, and I don't do particularly well on the subway, even if I hadn't taken the car–"

"You have a _car?!_" Kagome yelped.

Yuuko chuckled, "I'll admit that I don't use it very often, but when I need to get across town in a hurry..." Her voice trailed off.

"Oh, yes, of course, I see." Kagome agreed.

"At any rate, I may not be back for a few more days. So, you don't have to come in tomorrow or the day after, as you were scheduled. Pass the phone to Watanuki, so I can let him know, too!"

"Yes, Yuuko-san." Kagome answered with smile before going to the door and placing her hand over the phone's mouthpiece and calling "Watanuki-senpai! Yuuko-san's on the phone for you! I'd get here in a hurry!"

"Alright!" Watanuki answered, "I'm coming!" Sure enough, the boy was there after a moment or two, panting a little bit more than he usually would after a run across the front yard. Kagome frowned slightly, her head tilting to the side as she passed him the phone. "Yuuko!" Watanuki said happily into the receiver, pausing for her response, then said, "Then I guess I'll have to roast potatoes with leaves some other time."

The answering shriek was so loud that Watanuki had to hold the phone away from his ear, allowing Kagome make out the response to _that_ idea quite clearly. "WHAT?! I WANT ROAST POTATO!"

"MOKONA WANTS IT TOO!"

Kagome hid a smile as Watanuki warily brought the phone back to his ear, "Then I'll make it tomorrow." He paused again, then his eyes widened, "Is that so?" Another pause, this one accompanied by a nod, "All right." Yet another pause, "Thanks, take care." Whatever the response was, it had Kagome's coworker's eyebrows furrowing. "Eh?" He turned to Kagome, taking the receiver away from his ear. "She hung up on me." He told her as he replaced the phone in its cradle. He hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Did Yuuko tell you to take care, Kagome-chan?"

She shook her head slowly, frowning slightly as she took in her senpai. He _was_ looking a bit more tired than he should have been, which, added to the fact that Yuuko, who always seemed to know when things were going to happen to Watanuki, was worried enough to tell her part timer to take care. Kagome did not find the combination to be particularly comforting.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

"So, Watanuki was tired when he shouldn't have been, and Yuuko's worried enough to tell him to take care, when he didn't tell _you_ to do the same?" Doumeki summarized what Kagome had just told him as he lounged against the shoe lockers as Kagome collected her archery gear from her shoe locker, already changed for club. Kagome was running late, as it had been her turn to clean the classroom this afternoon.

"That's right," she confirmed, heading towards the locker room to change herself, "Watanuki seemed really confused by it, which makes me think that Yuuko-san might actually have been giving him one of her really vague warnings that he's too oblivious to pick up on."

He rolled his eyes, "That's what it sounds like. So, we need to be keeping both eyes on him, huh?"

"At least until Yuuko-san gets back," she agreed, "Since you _know_ Watanuki won't bother to do it himself."

"Isn't that the truth. Oh, look," Doumeki pointed, "There he is."

"With Himawari-senpai." Kagome added with a grimace, noting that Himawari's aura was as warped as always.

"The cake looks like a tree stump; it's so cute!" Himawari gushed.

"And it has Santa Claus and reindeer on it." Watanuki agreed.

"Yeah!" Himarwari said with a bright smile, "I love it!"

Watanuki went into his usual spasms of joy at having seen Himawari's happy smile. Doumeki rolled his eyes, then smirked at Kagome. "Oi." He called, dragging Watanuki from his oblivion.

"What 'Oi'!" Watanuki snarled.

"Going home?" Doumeki asked.

"YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THAT?!"

"No, Watanuki-senpai," Kagome soothed, smothering a smirk of her own, "We're just curious."

"Are Doumeki-kun and Kagome-chan heading to archery club, then?" Himawari asked with a smile.

"Yeah." Doumeki answered for both of them.

"The archery club's been working very hard lately." Himawari noted.

"There'll be a competition soon." Kagome explained, smiling innocently as she effectively kept Watanuki from adding to the conversation.

"Can I come cheer for you again, Doumeki-kun, Kagome-chan?" Himawari asked brightly,

Doumeki shrugged, casting a smug glance at Watanuki, who was already heading into a silent variation of psychotic rant mode, "Sure." He told her, before turning back to Watanuki, "So, _are_ you going home, or to your part-time job with Yuuko?"

"I don't have to go because Yuuko's not there." Watanuki informed him with a glare, but a distinct lack of concern, "She won't be home for a few days." Doumeki frowned, although Kagome thought that it might have more to do with Watanuki's lack of concern as to what this might mean for him. Watanuki did not seem to take it so well. "What?! You have an opinion?"

"Where's the pipe fox?" He asked abruptly.

Kagome opened her mouth to answer, but was cut off by her coworker. "It's at Yuuko's, sleeping in the pipe."

"You should carry it with you." Doumeki told him, turning to head to archery, Kagome less than a pace behind him.

"WHAT THE HECK?!" Watanuki roared after them, "WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!"

"Doumeki-kun and Watanuki-kun seem to get along very well." Kagome nearly choked on her own laughter at Himawari's assessment of the situation.

"Where'd you get that idea?!" Watanuki wailed.

"But seriously," Doumeki asked as they passed out of ear shot, "Is there any chance of getting Watanuki to carry the pipe fox around?"

Kagome grimaced, "None whatsoever," she answered, "Maybe it would be willing to hang out with him for a while if I asked it to, but Watanuki-senpai would never agree to it. He wouldn't see it as a precaution, like we do. I'm not sure what he _would_ see it as, but he definitely wouldn't like it."

Doumeki sighed. "That's what I thought. And with neither of you at your job..." His voice trailed off.

"It gets that much harder for us to keep an eye on him. Yes, I know." She grimaced, "I don't like this," she murmured, biting her lip, "I don't like this at all."

"Hey," Doumeki put a hand on her shoulder, turning her to face him. "We'll keep him safe, somehow. We always will, even if there's only so much we can do when he walks into trouble all the time."

Slowly she nodded, and looked up at him with a smile. "Right. We definitely will." She agreed, and the pair continued on their way to archery club.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

Warning bells went off in Doumeki's head the moment he heard Himawari's description of the woman with whom Watanuki had spent the previous afternoon speaking. Given the fact that the few times that he had seen his friend in the past few days of crazed archery practice Watanuki had been looking more and more exhausted with every glance that Doumeki had managed to catch of him, he had a very bad feeling about this woman indeed. His immediate reaction was to tell Kagome and get her take on the matter. "Has Himawari had the chance to tell you about Watanuki's new..." He searched for the right word, "Friend?"

Kagome grimaced, and nodded. "Yes, she has. I met up with her yesterday on the way home from her literature club meeting. She's really happy for Watanuki-senpai, but..."

"Bad feeling about it?" Doumeki asked, relieved.

"Very bad," she agreed, "I don't _think_ it's anything malicious, or, at least, I haven't caught any signs of mal-intent around Watanuki-senpai, but..." She trailed off, shaking her head, "That could be because there's really no ill will directed towards him, or it could just be that there's not enough for it to make a major impression on his aura. And the latter one's all too likely." She tugged her fingers through her hair, "Why did Yuuko-san have to pick _this week_ to vanish on us?" She asked, her voice plaintive.

He nodded in unhappy agreement. "Because she did," he answered, "And we get to pick up the slack."

Kagome bit her lip in what Doumeki was coming to learn was a sure fire indicator that she was worried, "Let's hope that we can."

Doumeki glanced around to make sure that everyone else was too focused on their archery to notice the two lurking in the background, then took one of Kagome's in his own. "Yeah. Let's hope so."

— - — - — - — - — - — -

Two days later, Himawari came running into Kagome's classroom during her classical literature class. The older girl was dressed in her gym sweats, indicating that she had come from gym class. "I'm so sorry, Ito-sensei," She panted, "But Watanuki-san collapsed, and the school can't find his contact information. The nurse wants to talk to Higurashi-san to see if she knows it, because the two of them are coworkers."

Kagome was already starting to push herself out of her seat as Ito-sensei nodded his approval. "Of course you may borrow Higurashi-san," he told Himawari, "Higurashi-san, you have my permission to stay with Watanuki-san until he recovers or is sent home. Remember to keep up with the reading assignments."

"Yes sir, Ito-sensei." Kagome said, bowing to her teacher before hurrying out the door behind Himawari. "What happened?" She demanded as soon as the classroom door slid shut.

"I don't know!" Himawari sniffled as they headed down the hallway, "Watanuki and I were talking about his new friend, you know, the nice lady who'd lost her child that I told you about? Anyway, we were talking about her, and then he started coughing. He made a joke about having managed to catch a cold, and then..." Himawari shuddered, tears spilling out of her eyes, "He just, just _collapsed_! I screamed, and Doumeki-kun and Touya-sensei came running. Doumeki carried him to the nurse, and said you might know who to get in touch with when the nurse couldn't find his emergency contact information. He's supposed to stay with him until he can go back to class."

Kagome nodded, and walked through the door, immediately going to Doumeki's side once she entered. "You were looking for me?" She said politely, interrupting his whispered conversation with the school nurse.

"Ah, yes, Higurashi-san," the nurse said, sounding relieved, "Do you happen to know who I should contact about Watanuki-san? His emergency contact information is a bit..." she hesitated, "Confusing."

"I'm not surprised," Kagome agreed, "His aunt and uncle are his guardians, but they aren't really involved in his life," she explained, biting her lip as she thought, "Normally, I would say to contact our boss, as Yuuko-san looks after him, but she's on vacation, so I would try them. I don't know what kind of answer you'll get from them, but it's worth a try." Quickly, she gave the nurse the information that Watanuki had given her just after she started working with Yuuko so that she would 'know where to send his body when Yuuko killed him'.

The nurse nodded, reading over the contact information that she had scribbled down. "Alright. I'm going to go call Watanuki-san's guardians. You three keep an eye on him. One of you come and get me if he wakes up."

"Yes ma'am!" They chorused. Himawari took a seat next to the bed while Kagome leaned against the wall next to Doumeki, and the three settled in to wait.

They did not have long. Less than five minutes later, Watanuki's eyelid fluttered upwards. "What..." He asked blurrily, his hand going to his head, "Happened to me?"

"You fainted during P.E. class." Doumeki answered flatly. Kagome threw a glance at him, knowing that his voice went flat when he was at his most worried.

"Why are you here?" Watanuki grumbled as he looked around blindly.

"Doumeki-kun carried Watanuki-kun all the way here," Himawari informed him as she got to her feet, and headed to the door, "I'll go get the nurse." she told Doumeki and Kagome as she passed them.

The remaining three were silent for a moment before Doumeki spoke softly, "A cold?" He demanded.

"What do you think it is?" Watanuki responded sullenly.

"Have you got a temperature?" Doumeki rebutted angrily.

"Why do you want to know?" Watanuki blocked, before turning away and muttering what sounded suspiciously like "Why did it have to be _him_?"

"Do you feel anything peculiar?" Kagome interjected.

"No," Watanuki answered, pushing his glasses back onto his nose, "This hasn't happened in a long time." He fidgeted for a long moment under Doumeki and Kagome's relentless and slightly angry stares, "So what the heck is wrong with you?"

"I thought only idiots catch colds in the winter." Doumeki informed him coldly, coming to stand at the foot of the bed.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY!?" Watanuki shrieked before he fell back to the bed, coughing frantically. Kagome moved to his side, rubbing his back to help ease his cough. A touch to his skin, even through his outdoor gym uniform, told her that far from having a fever, Watanuki's skin was icy to the touch. She glanced to Doumeki and shook her head slightly to answer his question. This was most definitely not a cold. Kagome had dealt with enough of those to know better.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

Kagome was not surprised when she got a call from Yuuko a few days later, asking her to get Doumeki and go to the shop to collect Watanuki in about fifteen minutes. Her senpai's condition had deteriorated to the point that he was having trouble walking on his own. "He might even be coughing up blood," she warned, "So tell Doumeki to be prepared for that. He's coming too close. If it continues, he'll disappear."

"I will," she promised grimly, "I'm sorry we let it get this far, Yuuko-san, but with the preparations and extra practices for the archery tournament..." She trailed off.

"Don't worry, Kagome-chan," Yuuko reassured her, "Watanuki's well fare is neither your primary concern, nor Doumeki's. You both are part of it, certainly, but you cannot prevent Watanuki from making foolish decisions on his own, particularly not when you are not right next to him." She paused for a moment, then added, "I trust you two have an idea as to what to do in order to get him out of it?"

"We're shrine brats from traditional lines," Kagome told her employer grimly, "What do you think?"

"That reassures me greatly." Yuuko told her, "Thank you."

"It's no trouble." Kagome reassured her, "Good bye, Yuuko-san."

"Good bye."

Kagome didn't hesitate for a second before she dialed the number Doumeki had given her ages ago. "Shizuka-senpai? It's Kagome."

"Hey. What's the news?"

"Yuuko-san just called me. We need to go collect him from the shop."

There was a moment of long silence before Doumeki spoke again. "It's that bad?"

"Yes. Yuuko-san said not to be surprised if Watanuki-senpai was coughing up blood, and that he definitely would not be walking normally." She bit her lip, and glanced at her clock. "I'm at home, so it'll take me some time to get there. Yuuko said that we would need to be there in about fifteen minutes. If you meet him there, I'll go straight to your shrine when I get off the subway."

"Alright." Doumeki agreed, "He'll probably be fairly out of it for a while after I drag him here." He hesitated, then added, "We pry information out of him, and... take care of the problem while he's out?"

Kagome's lips came together in a small, grim purse. "Absolutely."

"That's what I thought. I'll see you in thirty minutes."

"Yes. See you." She hung up, and ran to tell her mother that she had to go out for the evening, and might stay at Yuuko's for the night.

When she got to Doumeki's shrine, Watanuki was lying on a futon in an open room of the shrine. Kagome took a seat next to Doumeki, quietly setting the bag containing her bow and quiver down next to her. "How bad is it?" She asked him.

"Very. He couldn't even get to the door on his own. I heard him talking to someone who said that they couldn't leave the shop."

"Maru and Moro." Kagome explained, "They're animated dolls, of a sort. They don't have souls. I would imagine that the magic of the shop helps keep them alive."

"Maybe. I'd have to look into it to be sure."

"Mm." Kagome sighed, pushing her hair back. "He's not going to be happy with us."

"He'll get over it eventually." Doumeki assured her.

"I know he will, but still..." She trailed off, looking away.

"Kagome." Doumeki said, the tone of his voice making her turn to look at him.

She inhaled quickly. His face was much closer than she had expected, his nose almost brushing hers. "Shizuka-senpai?" She whispered.

"...Where am I?" Watanuki groaned, sending the moment up in smoke. Kagome and Doumeki jerked apart, Kagome blushing furiously.

"This is my house." Doumeki told him, sounding angrier than he had at any point of the incident.

"...What's going on?" Watanuki asked, rubbing his eyes with the heel of his hand.

"Kagome got a call from Yuuko." Doumeki explained, "She told us to go there."

"...What?" Watanuki asked, sounding slightly less foggy.

"It's to save you, Watanuki-senpai," Kagome said softly.

"What the heck is going on?" Watanuki demanded.

"Yuuko-san said," She continued, "That you'll disappear if this continues."

"In other words," Doumeki broke in, "You'll die."

"W-why?" Watanuki asked, bafflement and fear evident.

"Because you met that woman." Doumeki told him bluntly.

"But... she didn't do anything to me... and I don't feel uncomfortable in any way..." Watanuki protested.

"What other causes could there be, Watanuki-senpai?" Kagome asked quietly, shaking her head, "There hasn't been anything weird happening lately, has there?"

"But..." he hesitated, "That person... is not someone bad."

"That's hard to say," Kagome said gently, "She may not be 'bad' per say, but she _is_ killing you. That's not exactly 'good' either. In some cases, 'not bad' isn't good enough."

"Even though that's the case," Watanuki said quietly, "I promised to meet in the park. I... promised..." With those words, he lost consciousness once again.

Kagome and Doumeki looked at each other over his sleeping form, and got their bows, Kagome with her quiver at her side.

"It feels like the park should look different or something." Doumeki muttered.

Kagome laughed grimly, "It never does," she told him, "At least, not until it becomes a bloodbath. Then it _really _looks different."

Doumeki's eyes narrowed. "How do you know..."

"Wait!" Kagome cut him off, pointing to a bench just ahead of them, where two figures were sitting, one hunched over and coughing violently, "There they are! How did he manage to get here so fast?"

"He knew where he was going. That, and determination. Right. You run faster, so I'll confront head on, while you run around behind them and get into position to cut her off if she tries to go that way."

"Alright." Kagome agreed and ran through the gate before turning and running behind the bench towards the opposite side. She nearly stopped when she saw the spirit raising a hand to place it on Watanuki's back, but Doumeki took care of it.

"Don't touch him." The words were colder than ice as Doumeki strode through the gate towards the bench, his strung bow in his hand.

"Dou...meki..." Watanuki gasped through his coughing.

Kagome could see Doumeki looking at Watanuki with just the slightest tinge of something that she thought might be regret. "...We knew that no matter what we said, you'd still come to see her." He said quietly.

"We?" Watanuki asked, confused, as Kagome came into her position, drawing an arrow from her quiver.

"We." She confirmed, drawing Watanuki's attention to her.

"Even if I can see you, you really aren't human," Doumeki murmured, "This woman... I can see right through you."

"I can't see through her," Kagome told him, "But that's only because I have the Sight. You don't. The fact that you can see her... you've taken a lot from Watanuki-senpai, haven't you?" In tandem, she and Doumeki drew their bows, Kagome with her arrow faintly glowing with purifying energy, Doumeki's exorcism capabilities twining around the limbs of his.

"STOP!" Watanuki screamed, running in front of the spirit, trying to block her from both Doumeki and Kagome's powers. Kagome looked at Doumeki, nodded once, and shot at the exact moment that Doumeki did.

Instead of cowering behind Watanuki, however, the spirit darted forward, through Watanuki, to meet the two bolts of power, leaving the boy staring at her in horror as she faded away. "Wh...why?" He asked, reaching out for her.

The spirit smiled at him, albeit a little sadly, "Because I'm no longer lonely." Her voice whispered as she continued to fade, "Although I've only known you for a short period of time, but you must also have someone..." she reached out a hand towards Watanuki, and he reached a hand back towards her, his solid fingers brushing her insubstantial ones, "Who does not want you to disappear." And with that, she faded away completely.

Watanuki fell to his knees, tears dripping down his face as he brought his hands to his lap. "Why did you have to attack her?" He whispered, anger and pain softening his voice.

"It isn't because she's not human," Kagome told him, coming to stand before her grieving friend, "No one knows better than me that being inhuman isn't a reason to kill someone."

"We were only making a choice." Doumeki told him, joining Kagome, his bow in his hand. Watanuki stared at them for a moment before his eyes rolled up into his head, and he toppled backwards. Doumeki looked at Kagome with a sigh. "Let's get him back to the shrine."

"Actually," a voice said from behind them, "Perhaps it would be best to take him to the shrine. There's no telling how he'll react to the two of you after this, you know."

Both whirled, bows coming up before they realized who it was. Kagome heaved a sigh of relief. "Yuuko-san!" Kagome said with a smile, lowering her bow, "You're back!"

"Not too soon." Yuuko agreed, looking down at Watanuki's prone form. "Our Watanuki just can't seem to stay out of trouble. Now, if Doumeki would carry him to the shop..."

"Sure. And it's not too late, Kagome. You should be able to get home before ten if you catch your train. I'll walk you to the station after we drop him off."

She smiled up at him, a bit of concern for Watanuki lingering in her eyes, "Yes, thank you." With that, Doumeki hauled Watanuki onto his back for the walk back to the shop. Kagome and Yuuko walked on either side of him in silence. Yuuko brushed Watanuki's hair out of his eyes with a fond smile, and Kagome remembered that she had something she wanted to ask. "Yuuko-san, what have you been doing for the past week and a half?"

Yuuko smiled, "A ceremony to create gods. It has to do with retaliation for the Kou. Don't concern yourself with it." Kagome nodded, and turned to look forward once again.

After leaving Watanuki in the care of Yuuko, Maru, and Moro at the shop, Kagome and Doumeki walked closely together as they headed back to the subway station. Kagome's bow was tucked back into its bag, and Doumeki's was carried loosely in the hand further away from Kagome. The pair was relatively quiet, until Doumeki broke it. "The choice that we had... it wasn't really a choice at all, was it?"

Kagome shook her head. "No. It really wasn't."

Their fingers brushed together, leading Doumeki to take an action that he sincerely hoped wasn't _incredibly_ stupid. He turned his hand slightly, and locked his fingers with hers, holding her hand loosely. Kagome's eyes widened and she looked down at their hands, then up at his face without a word, and he thought that he could see the beginnings of a blush forming across her cheeks. Internally, he smirked. Kagome was letting him hold her hand without protest, even if only for the block before her subway station. He was making progress.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

The next day, Kagome and Doumeki were walking to class after a morning archery practice when they heard a commotion a little bit further on down the hall. "Himawari-chaaaaan!"

"Well, looks like he's just fine." Doumeki murmured.

"Yes," she agreed, a smile spreading across her face, "It really does. I'm glad- I'd started to miss his Psychotic Rant Mode."

"Heh."

"Watanuki-kun!" Himawari greeted him, "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine now!" Watanuki assured her with his usual enthusiasm, "I made bento! Let's eat lunch together later!" He looked up as Kagome and Doumeki passed them, both refusing to look at him. "Hold on." The pair stopped, glancing at each other before turning to look at the boy they had rescued the night before. Watanuki refused to look at them as he spoke, "You two can come at lunch if you want, too. But I'm only eating lunch with Himawari-chan, so you two'll really just be the third and fourth wheels!"

Their eyes widened, then Doumeki's expression slid into its usual smirk. "...Did you make inari sushi today?"

"NO! YOU STUPID INARI SUSHI IDIOT!" Watanuki shrieked, whirling to yell at Doumeki as if the evening before hadn't happened, "Today is tricolored riceballs!"

"Whatever." Doumeki said with a sigh.

"DAMN YOU AND YOUR BIG MOUTH!"

Himawari giggled as Kagome came to stand next to her, hiding a giggle of her own, "Watanuki-kun and Doumeki-kun get along so well!" She chirped to Kagome.

"They really do, don't they?" Kagome agreed.

"There's no way, Himawari-chan!" Watanuki declared, a little too emphatically.

"Tricolor, eh?" Doumeki asked, "Is there salmon in there?"

"STOP TALKING WITH SUCH AN ARROGANT TONE!" Watanuki scolded at full volume. Behind her hand, Kagome smiled. Everything was going back to normal.

— - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — - — -

Welcome to your biannual installation of _The Price of Hitsuzen_! This one was actually more or less on time; it's been a little over six months since the last installation. Due to the fact that college happens, this is about as good as it's going to get during the school season. Also fun is the fact that due to the timing of this release, I offer the chapter as a Christmas present to all of my regular, devoted readers. Merry Christmas/Happy Channukah/Happy Solstice/Happy Kwanzaa/Happy Everybody-Else-Gets-Presents-Around-This-Time-Of-Year-So-Let's-Get-Them-Too!

Now, there aren't a lot of notes to go with this chapter. However, there are a couple. Here they are:

1) Roasting potatoes in leaves- this is actually a really big treat in Japan called yakiimo. It's made with a variety of sweet potatoes common to Japan known as satsumaimo. These have a purplish skin and a yellow interior. The potatoes are roasted in the burning leaves, which provide a dry heat. Yakiimo can be made without the burning leaves, of course, by roasting the sweet potato in a pan over an open flame, but the leaf variety is more of an event. Yakiimo is incredibly popular during the autumn, where it serves as a mid afternoon meal, rather like tea in the United Kingdom.

2) Why does Kagome need an arrow when Doumeki doesn't?- it has previously established in canon (or at least, canon up to my cut off point in _InuYasha_) that the two archers have different capabilities. Kagome is a miko. She can purify that which is impure, particularly if its energy is at odds with hers, as would be the case of a youkai. I would imagine that she might not have quite as much effect with a spirit that was at one point human, as was the spirit preying on Watanuki, but due to the fact that she was harvesting the energy of the living, Kagome's purification would probably still do more than a little damage to her. Kagome's purification power requires a physical medium to take effect, in this case an arrow. Doumeki, on the other hand, is an exorcist. His power is centered on this ability, and, probably because his power is used primarily against incorporeal threats, he does not require a physical medium to be effective. My personal thought is that using the bow to 'shoot' a spiritual arrow is more of a means of focusing his energy towards his target in a way that he understands. Thus, when Kagome and Doumeki go after the spirit, Kagome has an arrow, but Doumeki does not.

3) Kagome's shock at Doumeki holding her hand- this is... something that is Not Done in Japan. Public displays of affection are not common. At all. As in, you don't see them. Ever. They are considered impolite in the extreme, as I understand it. Even a little thing like holding hands is a big deal, one that under the circumstances of this story, Doumeki only thought he could get away with because it was late on a street without heavy traffic. I'm not an expert on Japanese culture, so I'm not positive about all of the ramifications of the hand holding, but it's meant very much as a declaration of interest in this case.


End file.
